The  four  girl?.— Fajrc  12. 


FOUR  GIRLS 


AT 


CHAUTAUQUA 


B  Y 

PANSY. 

AUTHOR  OF  "ESTER  REID,"  "JULIA    REID,"  "THREE  PEO 
PLE,"  "THE   KING'S   DAUGHTER,"  "WISE  AND  OTH 
ERWISE,"  "  HOUSEHOLD  PUZZLES,"  "  CUNNING 
WOKKMEX,""GltA;NDPA'S  DARLINGS,"  &c. 


^Boston: 
Published  by  <D.  Motkrop  &  Co. 

(Dover,  Jf.  H.:  G.  T,  (Day  &•  Co. 

.     '  .  ;  ';  ,    -  •*:     ,.-.     "*£* 


Copyright,  1876,  by  D.  LOTHROP  £  Co. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

INTRODUCED 7 

CHAPTER  II. 

THE  QUESTION  DISCUSSED  .  •  •         23 

CHAPTER  III. 

ENTERING  THE  CURRENT    ....        87 

CHAPTER  IV. 

FAIRPOINT 51 

CHAPTER  V. 

UNREST 69 

CHAPTER  VI. 

FEASTS  84 


M150478 


4  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  VII. 

TABLE  TALK 100 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

"  AT  EVENING  TIME  IT  SHALL  BE  BRIGHT"       115 

CHAPTER  IX. 

FLEEING 129 

CHAPTER  X. 

HOW  THE  "  FLITTING  "  ENDED  .  .      143 

CHAPTER  XL 

HEART  TOUCHES  .    ^      .  .  .  .      160 

CHAPTER  XII. 

FLOSSY  AT  SCHOOL 175 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

"CROSS  PURPOSES."  .  .  .  .187 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

THE  NEW  LESSON 202 

CHAPTER  XV. 

GREAT  MEN         ....  216 


CONTENTS.  5 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

A  WAR  OF  WORDS 230 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

GETTING  READY  TO  LIVE    ....      247 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

THE  SILENT  WITNESS  ....      259 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

AN  OLD  STORY 273 

CHAPTER  XX. 

PEOPLE  WHO,  "  HAVING  EYES,  SEE  NOT"          287 

CHAPTER  XXI. 

A  "  SENSE  OF  DUTY."  ....      301 

CHAPTER  XXII. 
ONE  MINUTE'S  WOKE         .        .        .        .316 

CHAPTER  XXIII. 
"  I'VE  BEEN  REDEEMED"   ....    331 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 

SWORD  THRUSTS          .  346 


6  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XXV. 

SERMONS  IN  CHALK  ....      361 

CHAPTER  XXVI. 

* 

"  THEIR  WORKS  DO  FOLLOW  THEM"   .  .      376 

CHAPTER  XXVII. 

UNFINISHED  MUSIC 391 

CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

MENTAL  PROBLEMS 404 

CHAPTER  XXIX. 

WAITING 419 

CHAPTER  XXX. 

SETTLED  QUESTIONS 434 

CHAPTER  XXXI. 

THE  BEGINNING  OF  THE  END       .  ,  .      449 

CHAPTER  XXXII. 

THE  END  OF  THE  BEGINNING       .  463 


FOUR  GIELS  AT  CHAUTAUQUA. 


CHAPTER  I. 

INTRODUCED. 

URIE  MITCHELL  shut  the  door  with  a 
bang  and  ran  up  the  stairs  two  steps  at  a 
time.  She  nearly  always  banged  doors,  and  was 
al \vays  in  a  hurry.  She  tapped  firmly  at  the  door 
just  at  the  head  of  the  stairs ;  then  she  pushed  it 
open  and  entered. 

"  Are  you  going  ?  "  she  said,  and  her  face  was 
all  in  a  glow  of  excitement  and  pleasure. 

The  young  lady  to  whom  she  spoke  measured 
the  velvet  to  see  if  it  was  long  enough  for  the 

hat  she  was  binding,  raised  her  eyes  for  just  an 

(7)   ' 


•*•••     •  '••  -Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 


instant  to  the  eager  face  before  her,  and  said: 
"  Good-morning." 

"  Ruth  Erskine  !  what  are  you  trimming  your 
hat  for?  Didn't  it  suit?  Say,  are  you  going? 
Why  in  the  world  don't  you  tell  me  ?  I  have 
been  half  wild  all  the  morning." 

Ruth  Erskine  smiled.  "  Which  question  shall 
I  answer  first?  What  a  perfect  interrogation 
point  you  are,  Eurie.  My  hats  never  suit,  you 
know;  this  one  was  worse  than  usual.  This 
velvet  is  a  pretty  shade,  isn't  it  ?  Am  I  going  to 
Chautauqua,  do  you  mean  ?  I  am  sure  I  don't 
know.  I  haven't  thought  much  about  it.  Do 
you  really  suppose  it  will  be  worth  while  ?  " 

Eurie  stamped  her  foot  impatiently.  "  How 
provoking  you  are  !  Haven't  thought  of  it,  and 
here  I  have  been  talking  and  coaxing  all  the 
morning.  Father  thinks  it  is  a  wild  scheme,  of 
course,  and  sees  no  sense  in  spending  so  much 
money;  but  I'm  going  for  all  that.  I  don't 
have  a  frolic  once  in  an  age,  and  I  have  set  my 
lieart  on  this.  Just  think  of  living  in  the  woods 
for  two  whole  weeks  I  camping  out,  and  doing 
all  sorts  of  wild  things.  I'm  just  delighted." 

Miss  Erskine  sewed  thoughtfully  for  some  sec* 
ends,  then  she  said : 


Introduced.  9 

"  Why,  there  is  nothing  in  the  world  to  hinder 
my  going  if  I  want  to.  As  to  the  money,  I  sup 
pose  one  could  hardly  spend  as  much  there  as  at 
Long  Branch  or  Saratoga,  and  of  course  I  should 
go  somewhere.  But  the  point  is,  what  do  I 
want  to  go  for?" 

"Why,  just  to  be  together,  and  be  in  the 
woods,  and  live  in  a  tent,  and  do  nothing  civil 
ized  for  a  fortnight.  It  is  the  nicest  idea  that 


ever  was." 


"And  should  we  go  to  the  meetings?"  Miss 
Erskine  asked,  still  speaking  thoughtfully,  and 
as  if  she  were  undecided. 

"  Wh}T,  3res,  of  course,  now  and  then.  Though 
for  that  matter  I  suppose  father  is  right  enough 
when  he  says  that  precious  few  people  go  for 
the  sake  of  the  meetiugs.  He  says  it  is  a  grand 
jollification,  with  a  bit  of  religion  for  the  back 
ground.  But  for  that  matter  the  less  religion 
they  have  the  better,  and  so  I  told  him." 

At  this  point  there  was  a  faint  little  knock  at 
the  door,  and  Eurie  sprang  to  open  it,  saying  as 
she  went :  "  That  is  Flossy,  I  know ;  she  al \virys 
gives  just  such  little  pussy  knocks  as  that." 
The  little  lady  who  entered  fitted  her  name  per- 


10  Four  Girls  at  Ohautauqua. 

fectly.  She  was  small  and  fair,  blue-eyed,  flossy 
yellow  curls  lying  on  her  shoulders,  her  voice 
was  small  and  sweet,  almost  too  sweet  or  too 
soft,  that  sort  of  voice  that  could  change  when 
slight  occasion  offered  into  a  whine  or  positive 
tearfulness.  She  was  greeted  with  great  glee 
by  Eurie,  and  in  her  more  quiet  way  by  Miss 
Erskine. 

"  Pm  going,"  she  said,  with  a  soft  little  laugh," 
and  she  sank  down  among  the  cushions  of  the 
sofa,  while  her  white  morning  dress  floated 
around  her  like  a  cloud.  "  Charlie  thinks  it  is 
silly,  and  Kit  thinks  it  is  sillier,  and  mamma 
thinks  it  is  the  very  silliest  thing  I  ever  did  yet ; 
but  for  all  that  I  am  going  —  that  is,  if  the  rest 
of  you  are."  Which,  by  the  way,  was  always 
this  little  Flossy's  manner  of  speech.  She  was 
going  to  do  or  not  to  do,  speak  or  keep  silent, 
approve  or  condemn,  exactly  as  the  mind  which 
was  for  the  time  being  nearest  to  her  chose  to 
sway  her. 

"  Good ! "  said  Eurie,  softly  clapping  her 
hands.  "  I  didn't  think  it  of  you,  Flossy ;  I 
thought  you  were  too  much  of  a  mouse.  Now, 
Ruth,  you  will  go,  won't  you  ?  As  for  Marion, 


Introduced.   "  11 

there  is  no  knowing  whether  she  will  go  or  not. 
I  don't  see  how  she  can  afford  it  myself  any 
more  than  I  can ;  but,  of  course,  that  is  her  own 
concern.  We  can  go  anyway,  whether  she  does 
or  not  —  only  I  don't  want  to,  I  want  her  along. 
Suppose  we  all  go  down  and  see  her;  it  is  Sat 
urday,  she  will  be  at  home,  and  then  we  can  be 
gin  to  make  our  preparations.  It  is  really  quite 
time  we  were  sure  of  what  we  are  going  to  do." 
By  dint  of  much  coaxing  and  argument  Ruth 
was  prevailed  upon  to  leave  her  fascinating 
brown  hat  with  its  brown  velvet  trimmings,  and 
in  the  course  of  the  next  half  hour  the  trio  were 
on  their  way  down  Park  Street,  intent  on  a  call 
on  Miss  Marion  Wilbur.  Park  Street  was  a 
simple,  quiet,  unpretending  street,  narrow  and 
short ;  the  houses  were  two-storied  and  severely 
plain.  In  one  of  the  plainest  of  these,  wearing 
an  unmistakable  boarding-house  look,  in  a  back 
room  on  the  second  floor,  the  object  of  their 
search,  in  a  dark  calico  dress,  with  her  sleeves 
rolled  above  her  elbows,  had  her  hands  im 
mersed  in  a  wash-bowl  of  suds,  and  was  doing 
up  linen  collars.  She  was  one  of  those  misera 
ble  creatures  in  this  weary  world,  a  teacher  in  a 


12  Four  Girls  at  (Jhautauqua. 

graded  school,  and  her  one  day  of  rest  was  filled 
with  all  sorts  of  washing,  ironing  and  mending 
work,  until  she  had  fairly  come  to  groan  over 
the  prospect  of  Saturday  because  of  the  burden 
of  work  which  it  brought.  She  welcomed  her 
callers  without  taking  her  hands  from  the  suds ; 
she  was  as  quiet  in  her  way  as  Ruth  Erskine 
was  in  hers. 

This  time  it  was  Flossy  who  asked  the  impor 
tant  question :  "  Are  you  going  ?  " 

Marion  answered  as  promptly  as  though  the 
question  had  been  decided  for  a  week. 

"  Yes,  certainly  I  am  going.  I  thought  I  told 
you  that  when  we  talked  it  over  before.  I  am 
washing  out  my  .collars  to  have  them  ready. 
Ruth,  are  you  going  to  take  a  trunk  ?  " 

Ruth  roused  herself  from  the  comtemplation 
of  her  brown  gloves  to  say  with  a  little  start : 

"How  you  girls  do  rush  things.  Why,  I 
haven't  decided  yet  that  I  am  going." 

"  Oh,  you'll  go,"  Marion  Wilbur  said.  "  The 
question  is,  are  we  to  take  trunks  —  or,  rather, 
are  you  to  ?  because  I  know  I  shall  not.  I'm 
going  to  wear  my  black  suit.  Put  it  on  on 
Tuesday  morning,  or  Monday  is  it  that  we  start  ? 


Introduced.  13 

and  wear  it  until  we  return.  I  may  take  it  off, 
to  be  sure,  while  I  sleep,  but  even  that  is  uncer 
tain,  as  we  may  not  get  a  place  to  sleep  in  ;  but 
for  once  in  my  life  I  am  not  going  to  be  bored 
with  baggage." 

"  I  shall  take  mine,"  Ruth  Erskin  said  with 
determination.  "  I  don't  intend  to  be  bored  by 
being  without  baggage.  It  is  horrid,  I  think,  to 
go  away  with  only  one  dress,  and  feel  obliged  to 
wear  it  whether  it  is  suited  to  the  weather  or 
not,  or  whatever  happens  to  it.  Eurie,  what  are 
you  laughing  at?" 

"  I  am  interested  in  the  phenomena  of  Marion 
Wilbur  being  the  first  to  introduce  the  dress 
question.  I  venture  to  say  not  one  of  us  has 
thought  of  that  phase  of  the  matter  up  to  this 
present  moment." 

While  the  talk  went  on  the  collars  and  cuffs 
were  carefully  washed  and  rinsed,  and  presently 
Marion,  with  her  hands  only  a  trifle  pinker  for 
the  operation,  was  ready  to  lean  against  a  chair 
and  discuss  ways  and  means.  Her  long  appren 
ticeship  in  school-rooms  had  given  her  the  habit 
of  standing  instead  of  sitting,  even  when  there 
was  no  occasion  for  the  former. 


14  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

If  these  four  young  ladies  had  been  creatures 
of  the  brain,  gotten  up  expressly  for  the  purpose 
of  illustrating  extremes  of  character,  instead  of 
being  flesh  and  blood  creations,  I  doubt  whether 
they  could  have  better  illustrated  the  different 
types  of  young  ladyhood.  There  was  Ruth  Ers- 
kine,  dwelling  in  solitary  grandeur  in  her  royal 
home,  as  American  royalty  goes,  the  sole  daugh- 
er,  the  sole  child  indeed  of  the  house,  a  girl  who 
had  no  idea  of  life  except  as  a  place  in  which  to 
have  a  serenely  good  time,  and  teach  everybody 
to  do  as  she  desired  them  to.  Money  was  a 
commonplace  matter-of-course  article,  neither  to 
be  particularly  prized  nor  despised ;  it  was  con 
venient,  of  course.,  and  must  be  an  annoyance 
when  one  had  to  do  without  it ;  but  of  that,  by 
practical  experience,  she  knew  nothing.  Yet 
Ruth  was  by  no  means  a  "  pink-and- white  "  girl 
without  character;  on  the  contrary,  she  had 
plenty  of  character,  but  hitherto  it  had  been 
frittered  away  on  nothings,  until  it  looked  as 
much  like  nothing  as  it  could.  She  was  the 
sort  of  person  whom  education  and  circumstan 
ces  of  the  right  sort  would  have  developed  into 
splendor,  but  the  development  had  not  taken 


Introduced.  15 

place.  Now  you  are  not  to  suppose  that  she  was 
uneducated ;  that  would  be  a  libel  on  Madame 
La  Fonte  and  her  fashionable  seminary.  She  had 
graduated  with  honor ;  taken  the  first  prizes  in 
everything.  She  knew  all  about  seminaries ;  so 
do  I ;  and  if  you  do,  you  are  ready  to  admit  that 
the  development  had  not  come.  There  is  con 
stantly  occurring  something  to  take  back.  While 
I  write  I  have  in  mind  an  institution  where  the 
earnest  desire  sought  after  and  prayed  for  is  the 
higher  development,  not  alone  of  the  intellect, 
but  of  the  heart :  where  the  wonderful  woman 
who  is  at  its  head  said  to  me  a  few  years  ago : 

"  If  a  lady  has  spent  three  years  under  my  care, 
and  graduated,  and  gone  out  from  me  not  a 
Christian,  I  feel  like  going  down  on  my  knees  in 
bitterness  of  soul,  and  crying,  'Lord,  I  have 
failed  in  the  trust  thou  didst  give  me."  But  the 
very  fact  that  the  word  "  wonderful  "  fits  that 
woman's  name  is  proof  enough  that  such  institu 
tions  as  hers  are  rare,  and  it  was  not  at  that  sem 
inary  that  Ruth  Erskine  graduated.  She  was 
spending  her  life  in  elegant  pursuits  that  meant 
nothing,  those  of  them  which  did  not  mean  worse 
than  nothing,  and  the  only  difference  between 


16  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

her  and  a  hundred  others  around  her  was  that 
she  knew  perfectly  well  that  they  all  amounted 
to  nothing,  and  didn't  hesitate  to  say  so,  there 
fore  she  earned  the  title  of   "  queer."     At  the 
same  time  she  did  not  hesitate  to  lead  the  whirl 
around  this  continuous  nothing,  therefore   she 
occupied   that  perilous  position  of   being  liked 
and  admired  and  envied,  all  in  one.     Very  few 
people  loved  her,  and  queerly  enough  she  knew 
that  too,  and  instead  of  resenting  it  realized  that 
she  could  not  see  why  they  should.     She  was, 
moreover,  remarkably  careful  as  to  her  leading 
after  all,  and  those  who  followed  were  sure  of 
being  led  in  an  eminently  respectable  and  fash 
ionable   way.      Her   most  intimate  friend   was 
Eurie  Mitchell,  which  was  not  strange  when  one 
considered  what  remarkable  opposites  in  charac 
ter  they  were.     Eureka  J.  Mitchell  was  the  re 
spectable   sounding  name   that   the  young  lady 
bore,  but  the  full  name  would  have  sounded  ut 
terly   strange  to  her  ears,  the  wild  little  word 
"Eurie"  seeming  to  have  been  made  on  purpose 
for  her.     She  was  the  eldest  daughter  of  a  large, 
good-natured,    hard-working,    much-bewildered 
family.     They  never  knew  just  where  they  be- 


Introduced.  17 

longed.  They  went  to  the  First  Church,  which 
for  itself  should  have  settled  their  position,  since 
it  was  the  opinion  of  most  of  its  members  that  it 
was  organized  especially  that  the  "  first  families  " 
might  have  a  church-home.  But  they  occupied 
a  very  front  seat,  by  reason  of  their  inability  to 
pay  for  a  middle  one,  which  was  bad  for  "  posi 
tion,"  as  First  Church  gentility  went.  What 
was  surprising  to  them  was  how  they  ever  hap 
pened  to  have  the  money  to  pay  for  that  seat ; 
but,  let  me  record  it  to  their  honor,  they  always 
happened  to  have  it.  They  were  honest.  They 
ought  to  have  been  called  "  the  happen  family," 
by  reason  of  their  inability  to  tell  how  much  or 
how  little  they  might  happen  to  have  to  live  on, 
whether  they  could  afford  three  new  dresses 
apiece  or  none  at  all.  The  fact  being  that  it 
depended  on  the  amount  of  sickness  there  was 
in  Dr.  Mitchell's  beat  whether  there  were  to  be 
luxuries  or  simple  bare  necessities,  with  some 
wonderment  as  to  how  even  those  were  to  be 
paid. 

Eurie  was  the  most  light-hearted  and  indiffer 
ent  of  this  free-and-easy  family,  who  always  had 
roast  turkey  when  it  was  to  be  had,  and  who 


18  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

could  laugh  and  chat  merrily  over  warmed-up 
meat  and  johnny-cake,  or  even  no  meat  at  all, 
when  such  days  came.  How  she  ever  came  to 
think  that  she  could  go  to  Chautauqua  was  a 
matter  of  surprise  to  herself ;  but  it  happened  to 
have  been  a  sickly  summer  among  the  wealthy 
people,  and  large  bills  had  come  in  —  the  next 
thing  was  to  spend  them.  Chautauqua  was  a 
silly  place  to  do  it  in,  to  be  sure  ;  that  was  Dr. 
Mitchell's  idea,  and  the  family  laughed  together 
over  Eurie's  last  wild  notion;  but  for  all  that 
they  good-naturedly  prepared  to  let  her  carry  it 
out.  Just  how  full  of  fun  and  mischief  and 
actual  wildness  Eurie  was,  a  two-weeks  sojourn 
at  Chautauqua  will  be  likely  to  develop  ;  for  be 
fore  that  conversation  at  Marion's  was  concluded 
they  decided  that  they  were  really  going.  Why 
Marion  went,  puzzled  the  girls  very  much,  puz 
zled  herself  somewhat.  She  was  her  own  mis 
tress,  had  neither  father  to  direct  nor  sister  to 
consult.  She  had  an  uncle  and  aunt  who  lived 
where  she  called  "  home,"  and  with  whom  she 
spent  her  vacations,  but  they  were  the  poorest 
of  hard-working  country  people,  who  stood  in 
awe  of  Marion  and  her  education,  and  by  no 


Introduced.  19 

means  ventured  to  interfere  with  her  plans. 
Marion  was  as  independent  in  her  way  as  Ruth 
was  in  hers,  but  they  were  very  different  ways. 
Ruth,  for  instance,  indulged  her  independence  in 
the  matter  of  dress,  by  spending  a  small  fortune 
in  looking  elegantly  unlike  everybody  else,  and 
straightway  created  a  frantic  desire  in  her  set  to 
look  as  nearly  like  her  as  possible.  But  no  one 
cared  to  look  like  Marion,  in  her  severely  plain 
black  or  brown  suits,  with  almost  and  sometimes 
quite  no  trimmings  at  all  on  them.  It  was 
agreed  that  she  looked  remarkably  well,  but  so 
unlike  any  one  else  they  didn't  see  how  she 
could  bring  herself  to  dressing  so.  She  laughed 
when  this  was  hinted  to  her,  and  got  what  com 
fort  she  could  out  of  the  fact  that  she  was  con 
sidered  "  odd."  In  a  certain  way  she  ruled 
them  all,  Ruth  Erskine  included,  though  that 
young  lady  never  suspected  it.  The  queerest 
one  of  this  company  was  little  Flossy  Shipley  — 
queer  to  be  found  in  just  such  company,  I  mean. 
She  was  the  petted  darling  of  a  wealthy  home, 
a  younger  daughter,  a  baby  in  their  eyes,  to  be 
loved  and  cherished,  and  allowed  to  have  her 
own  sweet  and  precious  way,  even  when  it  in- 


20  Fvur  Grirls  at  Chautauqua. 

eluded  such  a  strange  proceeding  as  a  two  weeks 
in  the  woods,  all  because  that  strange  girl  in  the 
ward  school  that  Flossy  had  taken  such  an  unac 
countable  fancy  for  was  going.  This  family  were 
First  Church  people,  too,  and  capable  of  buying 
a  seat  very  near  the  centre,  in  fact  but  a  fe\v  re 
moves  from  the  Erskine  pew,  which  was,  of 
course,  the  wealthy  one  of  the  church.  The 
Shipley  pew  was  rarely  honored  by  all  the  mem 
bers  of  the  family,  and  indeed  the  pastor  had 
no  special  cause  for  alarm  if  several  Sundays 
went  by  without  an  appearance  from  one  of  them. 
A  variety  of  trifles  might  happen  to  cause  such 
a  state  of  things,  from  which  you  will  infer  that 
they  were  not  a  church-going  family.  Anothei 
strange  representative  for  Chautauqua ! 

Now  how  did  those  four  girls  come  to  be 
friends?  Oh,  dreadful!  You  don't  expect  me 
to  be  able  to  account  for  human  friendships  I  hope, 
especially  for  school-girl  friendships  ?  There  is 
no  known  rule  that  will  apply  to  such  idiosyn- 
cracies.  They  had  been  in  school  together; 
even  Marion  Wilbur,  with  the  indomitable  en 
ergy  which  characterized  her,  had  managed  one 
term  of  Madame  La  Fonte's  enormous  bills,  and 


Introduced.  21 

with  the  close  of  the  terra  found  herself  strangely 
enough  drawn  into  this  strange  medley  of  char 
acter  that  moved  in  such  different  circles,  and 
jet  called  themselves  friends.  You  are  to  un 
derstand  that  though  the  same  church  received 
these  girls  on  Sunday,  yet  the  actual  circle  in 
which  their  lives  whirled  was  as  unlike  as  possi 
ble.  The  Erskines  were  the  cream,  cultured, 
traveled,  wealthy,  aristocratic  as  to  blood  and  as 
to  manners,  literar}^  in  the  sense  that  they  bought 
rare  books,  and  knew  why  they  were  rare.  The 
Mitchells  had  a  calling  acquaintance  with  their 
family  because  Dr.  Mitchell  was  their  Chosen 
physician,  but  that  came  to  pass  through  an  ac 
cident,  and  not  many  of  the  doctor's  patrons  were 
of  just  the  same  stamp.  This  family  never  went 
to  the  Erskine  entertainments,  never  were  in 
vited  to  go  to  the  other  entertainments  starting 
from  the  same  circle,  yet  they  had  their  friends 
and  many  of  them.  The  Shipley s  were  free-and- 
easy,  cordial,  social,  friendly  people,  who  bought 
many  books  and  pictures,  and  were  prominent  in 
fairs  and  festivals,  and  were  popular  everywhere, 
but  were  not,  after  all,  of  the  Erskine  stamp. 
Finally  came  Marion,  alone,  no  position  any 


22  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

where,  save  as  she  ruled  in  the  most  difficult 
room  in  the  most  difficult  ward  in  the  city.  A 
worker,  known  to  be  such ;  a  manager,  recog 
nized  as  one  who  could  make  incongruous  ele 
ments  meet  and  marshal  into  working  order.  In 
that  capacity  she  found  her  place  even  in  the 
First  Church,  for  they  had  fairs  and  festivals, 
and  oyster  suppers,  and  other  trials  even  in  the 
First  Church ;  and  there  was  much  work  to  be 
done,  and  Marion  Wilbur  could  work. 

And  these  four  girls  were  going  to  Chautau- 
qna — were  to  start  on  Monday  morning,  August 
2, 1875. 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE   QUESTION  DISCUSSED. 

EV.  DR.  DENNIS  and  Rev.  Mr.  Harri 
son  met  just  at  the  corner  of  Howard 
and  Clinton  Streets,  and  stopped  for  a 
chat.'  Dr.  Dennis  was  pastor  of  the  First  Church, 
and  Mr.  Harrison  was  pastor  of  the  Fourth,  and 
some  of  the  sheep  belonging  to  these  respective 
flocks  supposed  the  two  churches  to  be  rivals, 
but  the  pastors  thereof  never  thought  of  such  a 
thing.  On  the  contrary,  they  were  always  get 
ting  up  excuses  for  coming  in  contact  with  each 
other ;  and  woe  to  the  work  that  was  waiting  for 
each  when  they  chanced  to  meet  of  a  morning 
on  some  shady  corner. 

"You  are  to  be  represented,  I  hear,  at  the 
coming  assembly,"  said  Mr.  Harrison,  as  they 
shook  hands  in  that  hearty  way  which  says,  as 

(23) 


24  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

plainly  as  words,  "  How  very  glad  I  am  to  seo 
you!" 

Dr.  Dennis  shrugged  his  shoulders. 

"Such  a  representation!"  he  said.  "If  the 
entire  congregation  had  been  canvassed,  it  would 
have  been  impossible  to  have  made  more  curious 
selections.  I  do  wish  we  could  have  some  real 
workers  from  the  different  churches." 

"  Miss  Erskine  isn't  a  member  of  the  church, 
is  she?" 

"  None  of  them  are  members,  nor  Christians  ; 
nor  have  they  an  atom  of  interest  in  any  such 
matters.  They  are  going  for  pure  fan,  and 
nothing  else." 

"Now  perhaps  they  will  happily  disappoint 
you  by  coming  back  with  a  wholesome  interest 
aroused  in  Sunday-school  work,  and  will  really 
go  into  the  work  for  themselves." 

"  I  don't  want  them,"  Dr.  Dennis  said,  stoutly. 
"I  wouldn't  give  a  dime  for  a  hundred  such 
workers;  they  are  an  injury  to  the  cause.  I 
want  Sunday-school  workers  who  havo  a  personal, 
vital  sense  of  the  worth  of  souls,  and  a  consum 
ing  desire  to  see  them  converted.  All  other 
Sunday-school  teaching  is  aimless.'' 


TJie  Question  Discussed.  25 

Mr.  Harrison  looked  thoughtful. 

"  We  haven't  many  such,  I  am  afraid,"  he  said, 
gravely ;  but  I  agree  with  you  in  thinking  that 
they  should  at  least  be  Christians.  Still,  I  sup 
pose  that  it  is  not  impossible '  that  some  one  of 
these  ladies  may  be  converted." 

"Not  at  Chautauqua,"  Dr.  Dennis  said,  as  one 
who  had  looked  into  the  matter  and  knew  all 
about  it.  "  I  am  not  entirely  in  sympathy  with 
that  meeting,  anyway ;  or,  that  is,  I  am  and  I  am 
not,  all  at  once.  I  think  it  would  be  a  grand 
place  for  you  and  me.  I  haven't  the  least  doubt 
but  that  we  would  be  refreshed,  bodily  and  men 
tally,  and,  for  that  matter,  spiritually.  If  the 
whole  world  were  converted  I  should  vote  for 
Chautauqua  with  a  loud  voice  ;  but  I  am  more 
than  fearful  as  to  the  influence  of  such  meetings 
on  the  masses  —  the  unconverted  world.  They 
will  go  thqre  for  recreation.  Their  whole  aim 
will  be  to  have  a  glorious  frolic  away  from  the 
restraints  of  ordinaiy  home-life.  They  will  have 
no  interest  in  the  meetings,  no  sympathy  with 
the  central  thought  that  has  drawn  the  workers 
together,  and  the  tendency  will  be  to  frolic 
through  it  all. 


26  Four   Crirls  at   Chautauqua. 

"  The  trutli  is,  there  will  be  such  a  mixing  of 
things  that  I  actually  fear  the  effect  will  be 
wholesale  demoralization.  At  the  same  time  I 
am  interested  in  the  idea,  and  am  watching  it 
with  anxietjr.  Since  I  have  heard  of  the  delega 
tion  from  my  own  church  I  have  been  more  con 
vinced  still  of  the  evil  influences.  It  makes  me 
gloomy  to  think  of  the  fruitful  field  such  a  place 
will  be  for  the  fertile  brain  of  that  little  Eurie 
Mitchell.  She  is  too  wild  now  for  civilized  life. 
The  four  walls  of  the  church  and  the  sacred 
associations  connected  with  the  building  serve 
to  keep  her  only  half  controlled  when  she  is  act 
ually  attending  Sabbath  service.  There  will  be 
nothing  to  control  her  in  the  woods,  and  she  will 
lose  what  little  reverence  she  possesses.  I  tell 
you,  the  more  I  think  of  it,  the  more  certain  I 
am  that  for  such  people  these  great  religious  jubi 
lees,  holding  over  the  Sabbath,  do  harm." 

"  You  put  it  more  gently  than  our  friend  Mr. 
Archer,"  Mr.  Harrison  said,  smiling.  "  He  is  in 
a  condition  of  absolute  scorn.  He  gives  none  of 
them  credit  for  honesty  or  genuine  interest.  He 
says  it  is  a  running  away  from  work,  a  regular 
shirking  of  what  they  ought  to  be  doing,  and  go- 


The  Question  Discussed.  27 

ing  off  into  the  woods  to  have  a  good  time,  and, 
by  way  of  gulling  the  public,  they  pretend  to 
season  it  with  religion." 

Dr.  Dennis  laughed. 

"  That  sounds  precisely  like  him,  and  is  quite 
as  logical  as  one  could  expect,  coming  from  that 
source,"  he  said,  indifferently.  "  Why  doesn't  it 
occur  to  his  dull  brain,  that  thinks  itself  such  a 
sharp  one,  that  the  leaders  thereof  are  men  re 
sponsible  to  no  one  save  God  and  their  own  con 
sciences  for  the  way  in  which  they  spend  their 
time  ?  There  is  nothing  earthly  to  hinder  their 
going  to  the  woods,  and  staying  three  months  if 
they  please  to  do  so." 

"  Oh,  but  I  have  left  out  one  of  the  important 
reasons  for  the  meeting.  It  is  to  make  money; 
a  grand  speculation,  whereby  the  fortunes  of 
these  same  leaders  are  to  be  made  at  the  expense 
of  the  poor  victims  whom  they  gather  about 
them." 

Again  Dr.  Dennis'  shoulders  went  upward  in 
that  peculiar  but  expressive  shrug. 

"  Of  all  the  precarious  and  dangerous  ways  of 
making  a  fortune,  I  should  think  that  went 
ahead,"  he  said,  still  laughing.  "  What  an  idea 


28  Four  G-irls  at  Chautauqua. 

now  I  Shouldn't  }rou  suppose  people  with  com 
mon  sense  would  have  some  faint  idea  of  the 
immense  expenses  to  be  involved  in  such  an 
undertaking,  and  the  tremendous  risks  to  be 
run  ?  If  they  succeed  in  meeting  their  expenses 
this  year  I  think  they  will  have  cause  for  rejoic- 


ing." 


"  The  point  that  puzzles  me,"  Mr.  Harrison 
said,  "is  what  particular  commandment  would 
they  be  breaking  if  they  should  actually  happen 
to  have  twenty-five  cents  to  put  in  their  pockets 
when  the  meeting  closed  ;  though,  as  you  say,  I 
doubt  the  probability.  But  they  force  no  one  to 
come  ;  it  is  a  matter  for  individual  decision,  and 
they  render  a  fair  equivalent  for  every  cent  of 
money  spent ;  at  least,  if  the  spender  thinks  it 
is  not  a  fair  equivalent  he  is  foolish  to  go ;  so 
why  should  they  not  make  enough  to  justify  them 
in  giving  their  time  to  this  work  ?  " 

"  Of  course,  of  course,"  assented  Dr.  Dennis, 
heartily ;  "  they  ought  to ;  none  but  an  idiot 
would  think  otherwise." 

It  is  to  be  presumed  that  both  these  gentlemen 
had  gotten  so  far  away  from  the  name  that  was 
quoted  as  holding  these  views  as  to  forget  all 


The  Question  Discussed.  29 

about  him,  else  they  certainly  would  nob  have 
been  guilty  of  calling  a  brother  minister  an  idiot, 
however  much  his  arguments  might  suggest  the 
thought. 

"  But,"  continued  Dr.  Dennis,  "  my  trouble 
lies,  as  I  said,  in  the  results.  I  have  no  sort  of 
doubt  that  great  good  will  be  done,  and  I  have 
the  same  feeling  of  certainty  that  harm  will  be 
done.  Take  it  in  my  own  church.  We  are  so 
situated,  or  we  think  ourselves  so  situated,  that 
not  a  single  one  of  the  earnest,  heaity  workers 
who  would  come  back  to  us  with  a  blessing  for 
themselves  and  us,  is  able  to  go ;  instead,  we 
have  four  representatives  who  will  turn  the  whole 
thing  into  ridicule,  and  dish  it  up  for  the  enter 
tainment  of  their  friends  during  the  coming 
winter. 

"  That  Miss  Erskine  seems  to  have  a  special 
talent  for  getting  up  Thursday  evening  enter 
tainments,  to  invite  our  people  who  are  supposed 
to  be  interested  in  the  prayer-meeting,  but  who 
rarely  fail  to  make  it  convenient  to  go  to  the 
party.  I  imagine  a  bevy  of  them  being  enter 
tained  by  Eurie  Mitchell.  She  can  do  it,  and 
she  is  looking  forward  to  just  that  sort  of  thing, 


30  Four  Grirls  at  Chautauqua. 

for  I  heard  her  rejoicing  over  it.  That  girl  will 
be  injured  by  Chautauqua;  I  know  it  as  well  as 
though  I  already  saw  it ;  and  the  question  with 
me  is,  whether  the  amount  of  evil  done  will  not 
overbalance  the  good.  At  the  same  time  I  am 
inconsistent  enough  to  wish  with  all  my  heart 
that  I  could  be  there." 

"  What  about  Miss  Shipley  ?  Perhaps  relief 
will  come  to  you  from  that  quarter." 

Those  shoulders  again. 

"  She  is  nothing  in  the  world  but  a  little  pink 
feather,  and  she  blows  precisely  in  the  direction 
of  the  strongest  current ;  and  Satan  looks  out  for 
her  with  untiring  patience  that  the  wind  shall 
blow  in  the  exact  direction  where  it  can  do  her 
the  most  harm.  Going  to  Chautauqua  with  the 
influences  that  will  surround  her,  with  Miss  Ers- 
kine  and  Miss  Wilbur  on  the  -one  side,  and 
Eurie  Mitchell  on  the  other,  will  be  the  very 
best  thing  that  Satan  can  do  next  for  her,  and 
he  doubtless  knows  it." 

"  I  do  not  know  Miss  Wilbur  at  all.  Is  she 
also  one  of  }Tour  flock  ?  " 

Dr.  Dennis'  face  was  dark  and  sad. 

"  She  is  an  infidel,"  he  said,  'decidedly.     "  She 


The   Question  Discussed.  31 

does  not  call  herself  such ;  she  wouldn't  like  to 
be  known  as  such,  because  it  would  be  likely  to 
affect  her  position  in  the  school.  But  the  name 
is  rightly  hers,  and  she  would  do  less  harm  in  the 
world  if  she  owned  it." 

"  It  is  an  extraordinary  representation,  I  de 
clare,"  Mr.  Harrison  said,  a  little  startled.  "  I 
have  been  half  inclined  to  be  envious  of  you 
because  you  were  to  hear  so  directly  from  the 
meeting,  but  I  believe  on  the  whole  I  shall  be 
quite  as  well  off  without  any  delegates  as  you 
will  with  them." 

"  Better,  decidedly.  I  am  distressed  at  the 
whole  thing.  It  will  result  disastrously  for  them 
all,  you  mark  my  words." 

And  having  settled  the  affairs  at  Chautauqua, 
apparently  beyond  all  repeal,  the  brethren  shook 
hands  again  and  went  to  their  studies. 

Meantime  the  express  train  was  giving  occa 
sional  premonitory  snorts,  and  the  four  }~ouog 
ladies  who  had  been  so  thoroughly  discussed  were 
in  various  stages  of  unrest,  waiting  for  the  mo 
ment  of  departure.  A  looker-on  would  have 
been  able  to  come  to  marked  conclusions  con 
cerning  the  different  characters  of  these  young 


32  Four   Grirls  at  Chautauqua. 

ladies,  simply  from  their  manner  of  dress. 
Flossy  Shipley  was  the  one  to  look  at  first.  That 
was  a  very  good  description  of  her  usual  style — 
something  to  look  at.  She  had  chosen  for  her 
traveling  dress  a  pale,  lavender  cashmere,  of  that 
delightful  shade  that  resents  a  drop  of  water  as 
promptly  as  a  drop  of  oil.  It  was  trimmed  with 
a  contrasting  shade  of  silk,  and  trimmed  pro 
fusely  ;  yards  of  gathered  trimming,  headed  by 
yards  of  flat  pleating,  and  that  in  turn  headed 
by  yards  of  folds.  The  dainty  sack  and  hat,  and 
the  four-buttoned  gloves,  were  as  faultless  as  to 
fit  and  as  delicate  in  color  as  the  dress.  In  short, 
Miss  Flossy  looked  as  though  she  might  be  ready 
for  an  evening  concert.  Moreover,  she  felt  as  if 
she  were,  or  at  least  she  had  an  uncomfortable 
consciousness  as  to  clothes.  She  kept  a  nervous 
lookout  for  the  lower  flounce  whenever  the  crowd 
of  people  surged  her  way,  and  brushed  vigor 
ously  at  the  arm  of  the  seat  she  had  chosen  ere 
she  dared  to  rest  her  arm  on  it.  Evidently  she 
had  given  herself  over  to  the  martyrdom  of 
thinking  of  and  caring  for  clothes  during  this 
journey,  and  I  don't  know  whether  there  is  a 
greater  martyrdom  made  out  of  a  trifle  than 


: 


The  Question  Discussed.  33 

that.  It  was  one  of  Flossy 's  besetting  sins,  this 
raying  herself  in  glory,  and  making  wrinkles 
in  her  face  in  the  vain  attempt  to  keep  so.  Not 
that  she  was  particularly  anxious  to  save  the 
wear  and  tear,  only  she  hated  to  look  spotted 
and  wrinkled,  and  she  could  never  seem  to  learn 
the  simple  lesson  of  wearing  the  things  best 
suited  to  the  occasion. 

Standing  near  her,  toying  carelessly  with  her 
traveling  fan,  and  looking  as  though  the  thought 
of  dress  was  something  that  had  passed  ut 
terly  by  her,  was  Miss  Erskine.  She  looked  like 
one  of  those  ladies  whom  gentlemen  in  their  wis 
dom  are  always  selecting,  pointing  them  out  as 
models.  "So  tasteiul  and  appropriate,  and 
withal  so  simple  in  their  dress." 

Let  me  tell  you  about  her  dress.  It  was  plain 
dark  brown,  precisely  the  shade  of  brown  that 
the  fashion  of  the  season  required.  It  was  of 
soft,  lusterless  silk.  It  was  very  simply  made, 
almost  severely  plain,  as  Miss  Erskine  knew  be 
came  a  traveler.  In  fact,  elegant  simplicity 
marked  her  entire  toilet,,  everything  matched, 
everything  was  fresh  and  spotless,  and  arranged 
with  an  eye  to  remaining  so.  I  am  willing  to 
concede  that  she  was  faultlessly  dressed,  and  it 


34  Four  •  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

was  a  real  pleasure  to  see  her  thus.  But  I  am 
also  anxious  to  have  the  gentlemen  understand 
that  that  same  simple  attire  represented  more 
money  than  two  wardrobes  like  Flossy  Shipley's. 
It  is  often  so  with  those  delightfully  plain  and 
simple  dresses  that  attract  so  many  people.  In 
fact,  it  might  as  well  be  admitted,  since  we  are 
on  that  subject,  that  elegant  simplicity  is  some 
times  a  very  expensive  article. 

Eurie  Mitchell  was  neither  particularly  ele 
gant  nor  noted  for  simplicity,  yet  her  dress  was 
not  without  character.  We  see  enough  of  that 
sort  to  become  familiar  with  what  it  means,  Its 
language  is  simply  a  straightened  purse,  necessi 
tating  the  putting  together  of  shades  that  do 
not  quite  harmonize,  and  trimming  in  a  way  that 
will  cover  the  most  spots  and  take  the  least  ma 
terial.  That  was  Eurie's  dress.  Skirt  of  one 
kind  and  overdress  of  another.  A  very  econom 
ical  fashion,  and  one  not  destined  to  last  long,  be 
cause  of  its  economy,  and  the  fact  that  very  ele 
gant  ladies  rather  curl  their  lips  at  it,  and  call  it 
the  u  patchwork  style."  Eurie  from  necessity 
rather  than  choice  adopted  it,  and  it  was  also  her 
misfortune  rather  than  her  taste  that  the  colors 


The  Question  Discussed.  35 

were  too  light  to  be  really  according  to  the 
mode.  Her  gloves  were  of  an  entirely  different 
shade  from  the  rest  of  the  attire,  and  were  mended 
with  a  shade  of  silk  that  did  not  quite  match. 
Altogether,  Ernie's  dress  did  not  suit  Miss  Ers- 
kine.  But,  for  that  matter,  neither  did  it  suit 
herself,  with  this  difference,  that  it  was,  after 
all,  a  matter  of  minor  importance  to  her. 
\  Miss  Wilbur's  dress  can  be  disposed  of  in  a 
single  sentence  :  It  was  a  black  alpaca  skirt,  not 
too  long,  and  severely  plain,  covered  to  within 
three  inches  with  a  plain  brown  linen  polonaise  ; 
her  black  hat  with  a  band  of  velvet  about  it, 
fastened  by  a  single  heavy  knot,  and  her  some 
what  worn  black  gloves  completed  her  toilet,  and 
she  looked  every  inch  a  lady.  The  very  people 
who  would  have  curled  their  aristocratic  lips  at 
Ernie's  attempt  at  style,  turned  and  gave  Miss 
Wilbur  a  second  thoughtful  respectful  look. 

There  was  a  Mr.  Wayne  who  deserves  atten 
tion.  He  possessed  himself  of  Miss  Erskine's 
fan,  and  played  with  it  carelessly,  while  he  said : 

"You  are  a  queer  set.  What  are  you  all  go 
ing  off  there  for,  to  bury  yourselves  in  thewoods  ? 
I  don't  believe  one  of  you  has  an  idea  what  you 


36  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

are  about.  And  it  is  the  very  height  of  the  sea 
son,  too." 

"  That  is  the  trouble,"  Miss  Ersldne  said,  with 
a  little  toss  of  her  handsome  head.  "  We  are 
sick  of  the  season,  and  want  to  get  away  from 
it.  I  want  something  new.  That  is  precisely 
what  I  am  going  for." 

"  I  have  no  doubt  you  will  find  it,"  and  the 
gentleman  gave  a  disdainful  shrug  to  his  shoul 
ders.  "  Out  in  the  backwoods  attending  a  halle 
lujah  meeting !  I  am  sure  I  envy  you." 

"You  don't  know  what  we  will  find,"  Eurie 
Mitchell  said,  with  a  defiant  air.  "  Nor  what 
may  happen  to  us  before  we  return.  We  may 
meet  our  destinies.  I  have  no  doubt  they  are 
lurking  for  us  behind  some  of  the  trees.  Just 
you  meet  the  evening  train  of  Wednesday,  two 
weeks  hence,  and  see  if  you  can  not  discover  the 
finger  of  fate  having  been  busy  with  us.  Won 
derful  things  can  happen  in  two  weeks." 

Just  then  the  train  gave  its  last  warning  howl, 
and  Mr.  Wayne  made  rapid  good-bys,  a  trifle 
more  lingering  in  the  case  of  Miss  Erskine  than 
the  others,  and  with  that  prophetic  sentence  still 
ringing  in  his  ears  he  departed.  And  the  four 
girls  were  actually  en  route  for  Chautauqua. 


CHAPTER  III. 

ENTERING  THE  CURRENT. 

*s  a  (lueer  thought,  not  to  say  a  start- 
ling  one,  what  very  trifles  about  us  are 
constantly  giving  object  lessons  on  our  charac 
ters.  Those  four  girls,  as  they  arranged  them 
selves  in  the  cars  for  their  all-day  journey  con 
veyed  four  different  impressions  to  the  critical 
looker-on.  In  the  first  place  they  each  selected 
and  took  possession  of  an  entire  seat,  though 
the  cars  were  filling  rapidly,  and  many  an  anx 
ious  woman  and  heavily  laden  man  looked  re 
proachfully  at  them.  They  took  these  whole 
seats  from  entirely  different  stand-points  —  Miss 
Erskine  because  she  was  a  finished  and  selfish 
traveler;  and  although  she  did  not  belong  to 

that  absolutely  unendurable  class,  who  occupy 

(37) 


38  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

room  that  is  not  theirs  until  a  conductor  inter 
feres,  she  yet  regularly  appropriated  and  kept 
the  extra  seat  engaged  with  her  flounces  until 
she  was  asked  outright  to  vacate  it  by  one  more 
determined  than  the  rest.  She  hated  company 
and  avoided  it  when  possible.  Flossy  Shipley 
was  willing,  nay,  ready,  to  give  up  her  extra 
seat  the  moment  a  person  of  the  right  sort  ap 
peared  ;  not  simply  a  cleanly,  respectable  indi 
vidual  —  they  might  pass  by  the  dozens  —  but 
one  who  attracted  her,  who  was  elegantly  dressed 
and  stylish  looking.  Flossy  would  endure  being 
crowded  if  only  the  person  who  did  it  was  styl 
ish.  Miss  Wilbur  was  indifferent  to  the  whole 
race  of  human  beings ;  she  cared  as  little  as  pos 
sible  whether  a  well-dressed  lady  stood  or  sat ; 
so  far  as  she  was  concerned  they  were  apt  to  do 
the  former.  She  neither  frowned  nor  smiled 
when  the  time  came  that  she  was  obliged  to 
move;  she  simply  moved,  with  as  unconcerned 
and  indifferent  a  face  as  she  had  worn  all  the 
time.  As  for  Eurie  Mitchell,  she  took  an  entire 
seat,  as  she  did  most  other  things,  from  pure 
heedlessness ;  any  one  was  welcome  who  wanted 
to  sit  with  her,  and  whether  it  was  a  servant 


Entering  the   Current.  39 

girl  or  a  princess  was  a  matter  of  no  moment. 
These  various  shades  of  feeling  were  nearly  as 
fully  expressed  in  their  faces  as  though  they  had 
spoken  ;  and  yet  they  did  not  in  the  least  com 
prehend  their  own  actions.  This  is  only  an  il 
lustration  ;  it  was  so  in  a  hundred  little  nothings 
during  the  day.  Not  a  window  was  raised  or 
closed  for  their  benefit,  not  a  turn  of  a  blind 
made,  that  a  close  student  of  human  nature 
could  not  have  seen  the  distinct  and  ruling  dif 
ferences  in  their  temperaments,  no  matter  from 
what  point  of  the  compass  they  started.  In  the 
course  of  time  they  reached  East  Buffalo. 

"Now  for  our  dinners!"  Eurie  said,  as  the 
whistle  shrieked  a  warning  that  the  station  was 
being  neared.  "  What  are  we  going  to  do  ?  " 

"  We  are  going  to  eat  them,  I  presume,  as 
usual,"  Miss  Erskine  said  in  her  most  indifferent 
tone.  I  should  explain  that  long  before  this  the 
girls  had  grown  weary  of  the  separate  seats,  and 
by  dint  of  much  planning  and  the  good-natured 
removal  of  two  fellow  passengers  to  other  seats 
had  accomplished  an  arrangement  that  should 
naturally  have  been  enjoyed  from  the  begin 
ning  :  that  of  a  turned  seat,  and  being  their  own 
seat-mates. 


40  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

"But  I  mean,"  Eurie  said,  in  no  wise  quenched 
by  what  was  a  common  enough  manner  in  Miss 
Erskine,  "  are  we  to  get  a  lunch,  or  are  we  to  go 
in  to  a  regular  dinner  ?  " 

"If  you  mean  what  /am  going  to  do,  I  shall 
most  assuredly  have  a  'regular'  dinner,  as  you 
call  it.  I  have  no  fancy  for  eating  things  thrown 
together  in  a  bag." 

"  The  bag  will  be  the  most  economical  process 
for  all  that,"  Eurie  said,  laughing  at  Miss  Ers- 
kine's  disdainful  face. 

"  I  presume  very  likely ;  but  as  I  did  not  start 
on  this  trip  for  the  purpose  of  studying  social 
economy,  I  shall  vote  for  the  dinner." 

"  And  I  shall  take  to  the  bag  method,"  Eurie 
said,  decidedly.  Opposition  always  decided  her. 
So  it  did  Flossy,  though  in  a  different  way ;  she 
was  sure  to  side  with  the  stronger  party. 

"It  would  be  pleasanter  for  us  all  to  keep  to 
gether,"  she  began  in  a  doubtful  tone,  looking 
first  at  Miss  Erkine  and  then  at  Eurie. 

*'  But  since,  according  to  Euiie's  and  my  de 
cided  differences,  it  is  impossible  for  us  to  do 
the  "better"  thing,  which  of  the  two  worse 
things  are  you  going  to  do  ?  "  This  Miss  Ers- 


Entering  the   Current.  41 

kine  said  with  utmost  good  nature,  but  with 
utmost  determination  —  as  much  as  it  would 
have  taken  to  carry  out  a  good  idea  in  the  face 
of  opposition. 

"  Oh,  I  think  I'll  go  with  you."  Flossy  said 
it  hastily,  as  if  she  feared  that  she  might  appear 
foolish  in  the  eyes  of  this  young  lady  by  having 
fancied  anything  else. 

"  Very  well  —  then  ii  remains  for  Marion  to 
choose  her  company,"  Eurie  said,  composedly. 

Marion  held  up  a  paper  bundle. 

"It  is  already  chosen,"  she  said,  promptly. 
"It  is  a  slice  of  bread  and  batter,  with  a  very 
thin  slice  of  fat  ham,  which  I  never  eat,  and  a 
greasy  doughnut,  the  whole  done  up  in  a  brown 
paper.  This  is  decidedly  an  improvement  on 
the  bag  dinner  (which  you  think  of  going  after) 
in  an  economical  point  of  view ;  and  as  I  am  a 
student  of  social  and  all  other  sorts  of  economy, 
not  only  on  this  trip  but  on  every  other  trip  of 
mine  in  this  mortal  life,  I  recommend  it  to  you; 
at  least  I  would  have  done  so  if  you  had  asked 
me  this  morning  before  you  left  home." 

Eurie  made  a  grimace. 

"  I  might  have  brought  a  splendid  lunch  from 


42  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

home  if  I  had  only  thought  of  such  a  thing,"  she 
said,  regretfully.  "My  thoughts  always  come 
afterward." 

"  And  it  is  quite  the  mode  to  take  lunches 
with  you  when  they  are  elegantly  put  up," 
Flossy  said,  regretfully,  as  she  prepared  to  fol 
low  Huth.  w  I  wonder  we  never  thought  of  it. 

This  last  remark  of  Flossy's  set  the  two  girls 
left  behind  into  a  hearty  laugh. 

"  Do  you  suppose  that  when  Flossy  has  to  die 
she  will  be  troubled  lest  it  may  not  be  the  fashion 
for  young  ladies  to  die  that  season  ? "  Eurie 
said,  looking  after  the  pretty  little  doll  as  she 
gathered  her  skirts  about  her  anxiously;  for, 
whatever  other  qualifications  East  Buffalo  may 
have,  cleanliness  is  not  one  of  them. 

"  No,"  Marion  answered,  gravely,  "  not  the 
least  danger  of  it,  because  it  happens  to  be  the 
fashion  for  ladies  to  die  at  all  seasons ;  it  is  the 
one  thing  that  never  seems  to  go  out.  I  am 
heartily  glad  that  we  have  one  thing  that  remains 
absolute  in  this  fashionable  world." 

Eurie  looked  at  her  thoughtfully. 

"  Marion,  one  would  think  you  were  religious 
—  sometimes,"  she  said,  gravely.  "  You  make 
such  strange  remarks." 


Entering  the   Current.  43 

Marion  laughed  immoderately. 

"  You  ridiculous  little  infidel  I  "  she  sa'id,  as  soon 
as  she  could  speak.  "  You  do  not  even  know 
enough  about  religion  to  detect  the  difference 
between  goodness  and  wickedness.  Why,  that 
was  one  of  my  wickedest  remarks,  and  here  you 
are  mistaking  it  for  goodness.  My  dear  child, 
run  and  get  your  paper  bag  before  it  is  time  to 
go  ;  or  will  you  have  my  slice  of  ham  and  half 
this  doughnut?  The  bread  and  butter  I  want 
myself." 

The  freshness  and  novelty  of  this  journey  wore 
away  before  the  long  summer  afternoon  began  to 
wane  ;  the  cars  were  crowded  and  uncomforta 
ble,  and  the  cinders  flew  about  in  as  trying  a  way 
as  cinders  can. 

None  of  the  girls  had  the  least  idea  where  they 
were  going.  They  knew,  in  a  general  way,  that 
there  must  be  such  a  place  as  Chautauqua  Lake, 
as  the  papers  that  they  chanced  to  come  in  con 
tact  with  had  been  full  of  the  delights  of  that 
region  for  many  months ;  and,  indeed,  a  young 
man,  earnest,  enthusiastic  and  sensible,  who 
stopped  over  night  at  Dr.  Mitchell's,  and  had 
been  a  delighted  guest  at  the  Chautauqua  Asseni- 


44  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

bly  a  year  before,  had  sown  tlie  first  seeds  that 
resulted  in  this  trip. 

lie  of  course  could  tell  the  exact  route  and 
the  necessary  steps  to  be  taken ;  but  it  had  been 
no  part  of  Eurie's  wisdom  to  ask  about  the  jour 
ney  thither ;  she  knew  how  many  boats  were  on 
the  lake,  arid  what  kind  of  fish  could  be  caught 
in  it,  but  the  most  direct  way  to  reach  it  was  a 
minor  matter.  So  there  they  were,  simply  blun 
dering  along,  in  the  belief  that  the  railroad  offi 
cials  knew  their  business,  and  would  get  them 
somewhere  sometime. 

As  the  day  waned,  and  the  road  became  more 
unknown  to  them,  and  their  weariness  grew  upon 
them,  they  fell  to  indulging  in  those  stale  jokes 
that  young  ladies  will  perpetrate  when  they  don't 
know  what  else  to  do.  As  they  declared,  with 
much  laughter,  and  many  smart  ways  of  saying 
it,  that  Chautauqua  was  a  myth  of  Eurie's  brain, 
or  that  she  had  been  the  dupe  of  the  fine  young 
theological  student  who  had  chanced  her  way, 
and  that  the  search  for  paradise  would  come  to 
naught,  perhaps  it  was  not  all  joking  ;  for,  as 
the  hours  passed  and  they  journeyed  on,  hearing 
nothing  about  the  place  of  which  for  the  last 


Entering  the   Current.  45 

few  weeks  they  had  thought  so  much,  a  queer 
feeling  began  to  steal  over  them  that  there  really 
was  no  such  spot,  and  that  they  were  all  a  set  of 
idiots. 

"  I  thought  we  should  have  been  there  by 
this  time,  and  regularly  established  at  house 
keeping,"  Marion  said,  as  they  picked  up  baskets 
and  bundles  and  prepared  to  change  cars  ;  "  and 
here  we  are  making  another  change.  This  is  the 
third  this  afternoon,  or  is  it  the  thirteenth  ?  and 
who  knows  where  Brocton  is  or  what  it  is?  Is 
anybody  sure  that  it  is  in  this  hemisphere? 
Eurie,  you  are  certain  that  your  theological  stu 
dent  did  not  cross  the  Atlantic  in  order  to  reach 
his  elysium  ?  " 

"  Brocton  is  here,"  Eurie  said,  as  they  climbed 
the  steps  of  the  car.  "  I  see  the  name  on  that 
building  yonder ;  though  whether  4  here '  is 
America  or  Asia  I  am  unable  to  say.  I  think 
we  have  come  overland,  but  it  is  so  long  since 
we  started  I  may  have  forgotten." 

But  at  this  point  they  checked  their  nonsense 
and  began  to  get  up  a  new  interest  in  existence. 
They  were  among  a  different  class  of  people  — 
earnest,  eager  people,  who  seemed  to  have  no 


46  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

thought  of  yawns  or  weariness.  Camp-stools 
abounded,  with  here  and  there  a  bundle  looking 
like  quilts  and  pillows.  Every  lady  had  a  water 
proof  and  every  man  an  umbrella,  and  the  tails 
was  of  "  tents,"  and  "  division  meetings,"  ano 
"the  morning  boats,"  with  stray  words  likp 
"Fairpoint"  and  "  May ville  "  coming  in  ever> 
now  and  then,  These  two  words,  the  girls  knew, 
had  to  do  with  their  hopes ;  so  they  began  to 
feel  revived. 

"  I  actually  begin  to  think  there  is  some  foun 
dation  for  Ernie's  wild  fancies  after  all,"  Marion 
whispered,  "  or  else  this  is  another  party  of  luna 
tics  as  wild  as  ourselves ;  but  they  are  a  large 
and  respectable  party  ;  I'm  rather  hopeful." 

In  two  minutes  more  the  railroad  official  who 
speaks  in  the  unknown  tongue  yelped  something 
at  either  door,  and  thereupon  everybody  got  up 
and  began  to  prepare  for  an  exit. 

"  Do  you  think  he  said  Mayville?  "  questioned 
Eurie  with  a  shade  of  anxiety  in  her  voice. 
She  had  been  the  leader  of  this  scheme,  and  she 
felt  just  a  trifle  of  responsibility. 

"Haven't  the  least  idea,"  Marion  said,  com 
posedly  gathering  her  wrappings ;  "  it  sounded 


Entering  the   Current.  47 

as  much  like  any  other  word  you  happen  to  think 
of  as  it  did  like  that,  but  everybody  is  going,  and 
Flossy  'and  I  are  determined  to  be  in  the  fashion, 
so  we  go  too." 

At  the  door  dismay  seized  upon  Flossy.  A 
light  drizzly  rain  was  falling.  Oh,  the  lavender 
suit !  and  her  waterproof  tucked  away  in  her 
trunk,  and  everybody  pushing  and  trying  to  pass 
her. 

"Never  mind,"  Marion  said,  with  utmost  good 
nature,  "  here  is  mine  ;  I  haven't  any  trunk,  so  it 
is  handy  ;  and  it  has  rained  on  my  old  alpaca  for 
ages ;  can't  hurt  that,  so  Avrap  yourself  up  and 
come  along,  for  I  believe  in  my  heart  that  this 
is  Mayville." 

"  This  way  to  the  Mayville  House,"  said  the 
gentlemanly  official,  touching  his  hat  as  politely 
as  though  they  had  been  princesses.  Why  cali't 
hotel  subordinates  more  often  show  a  little  com 
mon  politeness?  This  act  decided  the  location 
of  these  four  girls  in  a  twinkling ;  they  knew 
nothing  about  any  of  the  hotels,  and,  other 
things  being  equal,  anybody  would  rather  go  to 
a  place  to  which  ihey  had  been  decently  invited 
than  to  be  elbowed  and  yelled  at  and  forced. 


48  Four  Girls  at  CJiautauaua. 

"Water  and  rest  and  tea  did  much  to  restore 
them  to  comfort,  and  as  they  discussed  matters 
in  their  rooms  afterward  they  assured  each  other 
that  the  Mayville  House  was  just  the  place  to 
stop  at.  A  discussion  was  in  progress  as  to  the 
evening  meeting.  Miss  Erskine  had  taken  down 
her  hair  and  donned  a  becoming  wrapper,  and 
reposed  serenely  in  the  rocking-chair,  offering 
no  remark  beyond  the  composed  and  decided, 
"  I  am  not  going  over  in  the  woods  to-night  by 
any  manner  of  means  ;  that  would  be  enough  if 
I  were  actually  one  of  the  lunatics  instead  of  a 
mild  looker-on." 

"I  haven't  the  least  idea  of  going,  either," 
Eurie  said,  sitting  on  a  stool,  balancing  her 
stockinged  feet  against  Ruth's  rocker.  "  Not 
that  I  mind  the  rain,  or  that  it  wouldn't  be  fun 
enough  if  I  were  not  so  dead  tired.  But  I  tell 
you,  girls,  I  have  had  t<?  vrork  like  a  soldier  to 
get  ready,  and  having  the*  care  of  such  a  set  as 
you  have  been  all  day  has  been  too  much  for  me. 
A  religious  meeting  would  just  finish  me.  I'm 
going  to  save  myself  up  for  morning.  You  are 
a  goosie  to  go,  Marion.  It  is  as  dark  as  ink,  and 
is  raining.  What  can  you  see  to-night  ?  " 


Entering  the   Current.  49 

"  I  tell  you  I've  got  to  go,"  Marion  said,  as  she 
quietly  unstrapped  her  shawl.  "I  earn  my 
bread,  as  you  are  very  well  aware,  by  teaching 
school ;  but  my  butter,  and  a  few  such  delica 
cies,  I  get  by  writing  up  folks  and  things.  I've 
promised  to  give  a  melting  account  of  this  first 
meeting,  and  I  have  no  idea  of  losing  the  chance. 
Flossy  Shipley,  you  may  wear  my  waterproof  ev 
ery  minute  if  you  will  go  with  me.  It  is  long 
"enough  to  drag  a  quarter  of  a  yard,  and  a  rain 
drop  can  not  get  near  enough  to  think  of  you." 

"  But  it  is  so  damp,"  shivered  Flossy,  looking 
drearily  out  into  the  night,  "and  so  dark,  Mar 
ion,  I  am  afraid  to  go." 

"Plenty  of  people  going.  What  is  there  to 
be  afraid  of?  We  go  down  from  here  in  a  car 
riage." 

"I  wouldn't  go,  Flossy,"  chimed  in  a  voice 
from  the  rocker  and  one  from  the  ottoman. 

"  It  will  be  very  damp  there,"  pleaded  Flossy, 
who  did  like  to  be  accommodating. 

"  You  may  have  ten  thicknesses  of  my  shawl 
to  sit  on,"  urged  Marion.  "  Come,  now,  Flossy 
Shipley.  I  didn't  have  the  least  idea  of  coaxing 
those  other  girls  to  go,  for  every  one  knows  they 


50  Four   Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

are  selfish  and  will  do  as  they  please ;  but  I  did 
think  you  would  keep  me  company.  It  really 
isn't  pleasant  to  think  of  going  alone." 

The  end  of  it  was  that  Flossy,  done  up  in  a 
cloak  twice  too  large  for  her,  went  off  looking 
like  the  maityr  that  she  was,  and  Eurie  and 
Ruth  staid  in  their  room  and  laughed  over  the 
ridiculousness  of  Flossy  Shipley  going  out  in  the 
night  and  the  rain,  in  a  lavender  cashmere,  to 
attend  a  religious  meeting  1 


CHAPTER  IV. 

FAIKPOINT. 

was  not  so  very  dark  after  all,  nor  so 
disagreeable  as  she  had  imagined.  She 
sat  curled  up  in  a  heap  on  the  deck  of  the  Col. 
Phillips,  looking  with  interested  eyes  on  the 
groups  of  people,  who,  despite  the  rain  and  dark 
ness,  were  evidently  on  their  way  to  Chautau- 
qua.  Marion  had  gone  to  the  other  side  of  the 
boat  and  was  looking  over  into  the  water,  rested 
and  interested  in  spite  of  herself  by  the  novelty 
of  the  scene  around  her.  The  fellow-passengers 
seemed  not  to  be  novices  like  themselves,  for  as 
their  talk  floated  to  the  girls  it  had  sentences 
like  these  : 

"  Last  year  we  stopped  in  the  village,  but  this 

time  we  are  going  to  be  right  on  the  ground." 

(51) 


52  Four  G-irls  at  Chautauqua. 

"  Last  year  it  rained,  too ;  but  rain  makes  no 
difference  at  Chautauqua." 

"  They  are  all  last  year's  people,"  said  Marion, 
coming  over  to  Flossy's  side.  "  That  speaks 
well  for  the  interest,  or  the  fun,  doesn't  it  ? 
Now  what  do  you  suppose  takes  all  these  people 
to  this  place  ?  " 

"/  don't  know,"  Flossy  said  thoughtfully. 
"  I  never  thought  much  about  it.  Perhaps  some 
of  them  came  just  as  I  did,  because  the  girls 
were  coming  and  asked  me  to.  I'm  sure  I 
haven't  the  least  idea  what  else  I  came  for." 

Marion  looked  down  on  the  little  creature 
done  up  in  water-proof,  with  a  half-pitying 
laugh. 

"You  are  a  good  little  mouse,"she  said  patroniz 
ingly.  "  I  never  remember  doing  anything  with 
out  a  motive  somewhere.  It  must  be  refreshing 
to  forget  that  important  individual  now  and 
then." 

"Oh,  I  don't,"  Flossy  said,  simply.  "Of 
course  I  came  for  the  good  time  I  would  have. 
But  then,  you  know,  1  would  never  have  thought 
of  coming  if  the  rest  of  you  hadn't." 

Another  laugh  from  Marion. 


Fair  point.  53 

"•  You  let  others  do  your  thinking  for  you^"  she 
said,  with  just  a  touch  of  contempt,  covered  by 
the  gayety  of  the  tone.  "  Well,  it  is  much  the 
easier  way.  If  I  could  find  anyone  to  undeatake 
the  task,  I  should  like  to  try  it  for  myself." 

Flossy's  answer  was  a  little  scream  of  delight, 
for  they  were  coming  upon  fairy -land ;  the  lights 
of  Fail-point  were  gleaming  in  the  soft  distance, 
and  very  fairy-like  they  looked  shining  among 
the  trees.  The  sound  of  music  on  the  steamer 
mingled  charmingly  with  the  peal  of  the  bells 
from  the  shore.  Marion  looked  on  the  scene 
with  quiet  interest.  Flossy's  face  took  a  pink 
glow  ;  she  liked  pretty  things.  As  for  those  who 
had  been  at  Chautauqua  the  year  before,  they 
gathered  at  the  vessel's  side  as  those  gather  who, 
after  a  long  and  tiresome  journey,  realize  that 
they  are  nearing  home.  They  were  eager  and 
excited. 

"  The  dock  is  better,"  said  one. 

"  Yes,  and  the  passage  way  is  larger,"  chimed 
in  his  nearest  neighbor. 

"  Oh,  everything  is  on  an  improved  scale  this 
year,"  said  still  a  third,  speaking  confidently. 

"  The  meeting  can't  be  any  better,"  spoke   a 


54  Four  Grirls  at  Chautauqua. 

quiet-faced  woman,  with  a  decided  voice,  "  that 
is  simply  impossible." 

Marion  laughed  softly. 

"  Hear  the  lunatics !"  she  said,  bending  to  give 
Flossy  the  benefit  of  her  words.  "They  are 
just  infatuated ;  they  think  this  is  the  original 
Garden  of  Eden,  with  that  wretched  Eve  left 
out.  If  she  were  here  I  would  choke  her  with 
a  relish."  This  last  in  a  muttered  undertone,  too 
low  for  even  Flossy,  and  with  a  darkening  face. 

Meantime  the  boat  rounded  the  point,  the 
plank  was  laid,  and  the  feet  of  the  eager  passen 
gers  touched  the  shores  of  Chautauqua.  Some 
detention  about  tickets,  arising  from  a  misunder 
standing  of  terms,  made  our  girls  lose  sight  and 
sound  of  the  rest  of  the  boat-load,  and  when  they 
passed  within  the  railing  they  found  themselves 
suddenly  and  strangely  alone.  A  few  lights 
glimmered  in  the  trees,  enough  to  point  the  way, 
and  from  the  cottages  near  at  hand  streams  of 
light  shot  out  into  the  darkness ;  but  110  sound 
of  footsteps,  no  sight  of  human  being  appeared. 

"  Over  the  river,  on  the  hill, 
Another  village  lieth  still," 

quoted  Marion,  gravely.     Then : 


Fair  point.  f     55 

"  I  say,  Flossy,  what  does  it  all  mean  ?  Are 
\ve  among  a  party  of  witches,  do  you  suppose? 
Where  could  those  congenial  spirits  so  suddenly 
have  conveyed  themselves  away,  I  wonder  ? 
The  road  isn't  broad,  but  it  most  decidedly  isn't 
straight.  Only  behold  that  long,  long,  long  array 
of  damp  and  empty  seats  I  Where  are  the  faith 
ful  now,  do  you  suppose  ?  " 

"  There  isu't  any  meeting  here  to-night,  and 
we  might  have  known  there  wouldn't  be,"  Flossy 
said,  peevishly,  beginning  to  grow  not  only  dis 
enchanted  but  half  frightened.  u  I  was  never  in 
such  a  queer  place  in  my  life !  Those  white 
seats  all  look  like  ghosts.  What  could  have 
possessed  you  to  come  to-night  ?  Of  course  they 
wouldn't  have  meeting  in  the  rain !  Marion,  do 
let  us  go  back ;  I  am  frightened  out  of  my 
wits!" 

"  You  blessed  little  simpleton!  "  said  Marion, 
gaily.  "  What  on  earth  is  there  to  be  fright 
ened  over?  Not  pine  seats  and  lamplight, 
Burely,  and  there  is  nothing  more  formidable 
than  that  so  far." 

"I  wish  with  all  my  heart  that  I  were  safely 
lack  in  the  hotel,  where  I  would  have  been  if 


56    %          Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

you  had  not  coaxed  me  away,"  sighed,  or  rather 
whined,  poor  Flossy,  shivering  with  chilliness  or 
nervousness,  and  added :  "  Corne,  Marion,  do  let 
us  go  back  with  that  boat.  It  can't  have  started 
yet." 

Marion  grasped  her  hand  firmly,  and  spoke 
like  a  commander : 

"  Flossy  Shipley,  don't  you  go  to  getting  nerv 
ous  and  acting  like  a  simpleton,  for  I  won't 
have  it.  As  for  that  boat,  it  is  hlaf  way  to  May- 
ville  by  this  time,  and  I  am  glad  of  it.  Do  you 
suppose  I  am  going  to  make  an  ignominious  re 
treat  now,  when  we  have  got  so  far  advanced? 
Not  a  bit  of  it.  Jf  there  is  no  meeting,  we  will 
go  where  there  ought  to  be  one,  since  it  was  ad 
vertised,  and  not  a  word  said  about  rain.  It 
isn't  likely  they  stay  out-doors  when  it  actually 
pours.  Very  likely  they  go  in  somewhere  and 
have  a  prayer-meeting.  So  now  compose  your 
nerves  and  walk  fast,  for  if  the  spot  is  within 
walking  distance  I  am  going  to  find  it.  I  tell 
you  I  am  to  get  ten  dollars  at  least  for  writing 
up  this  meeting,  and  I  am  going  to  write  it  if 
there  is  one  to  write  about.  If  there  isn't  I  shall 
have  to  make  up  one.  I  dare  say  I  could  make 


Fair  point.  57 

it  interesting.  I'll  put  you  in  if  I  do,  and  3-011 
shall  be  Mrs.  Fearful  —  in  Pilgrim's  Progress, 
you  know  —  if  you  don't  stop  shivering  and  walk 
faster." 

During  this  time  they  had  really  been  making 
as  rapid  progress  as  the  up-hill  way  and  their 
doubt  of  the  road  would  allow.  Flossy  made 
no  reply  to  this  harangue,  for  the  reason  that  a 
sudden  turn  in  the  path  brought  them  into  bright 
light  and  the  sound  of  a  rin inner  voice. 

o  o      o 

"  There  !  "  whispered  Marion  as  the  mammoth 
tent  came  in  view.  "What  did  I  tell  you? 
"What  do  you  think  of  that  for  a  prayer-meet 
ing  ?  "  And  then  she,  too,  relapsed  into  silence, 
for  the  ringing  tones  of  the  speaker's  voice  were 
distinct  and  clear.  They  made  their  way  rapidly 
and  silently  under  the  tent,  down  the  aisle — half 
way  down  —  then  a  gentleman  beckoned  them, 
and  by  dint  of  some  pushing  and  moving  secured 
them  seats.  Then  both  girls  looked  about  them 
in  astonishment.  Who  would  have  supposed 
that  it  rained  !  Why,  there  were  rows  and  rows 
and  rows  of  heads,  men  and  women,  and  even 
children.  A  tent  larger  than  they  had  imagined 
could  be  built  and  packed  with  people. 


58  Four  Girls  at  Cfiautauqua. 

Marion's  tongue  was  uncontrollable.  She  waa 
barely  seated  before  she  began  her  whispered 
comments : 

"  That  man  who  is  speaking  is  Dr.  Vincent. 
Hasn't  he  a  ringing  voice  ?  It  reminds  me  of  a 
trumpet.  He  likes  to  use  it,  I  know  he  does ; 
he  has  learned  to  manage  it  so  nicely,  and  with 
an  eye  to  the  effect.  You  will  hear  his  voice 
often  enough,  and  you  just  watch  and  see  if  you 
don't  learn  to  know  the  first  echo  of  it  from  any 
other." 

"  Perhaps  he  won't  be  here  all  the  time  to  use 
his  voice,"  whispered  back  Flossy,  without  much 
idea  what  she  was  saying.  The  novelty  of  the 
scene  had  stolen  her  senses. 

Marion  laughed  softly. 

"  You  blessed  little  idiot !  "  she  said,  "  don't 
you  know  that  he  manufactured  Chautauqua, 
root  and  branch  ?Or  if  he  didn't  quite  manufact 
ure  the  trees  he  looked  after  their  growth,  I 
dare  say.  Why,  this  meeting  is  his  darling,  his 
idol,  his  best  beloved.  '  Hear  him  speak  ? '  I 
guess  you  will.  I  should  like  to  see  a  meeting 
of  this  kind  that  didn't  hear  from  him.  It  will 
have  to  be  when  he  is  out  of  the  body." 


Fairpoint.  69 

"How  do  you  know  about  him?"  whispered 
Flossy,  struck  with  sudden  curiosity. 

"  I've  written  him  up,"  Marion  said,  briefly. 
"  I've  had  to  do  it  several  times.  Oh,I'm  a  veteran 
at  Sunday-school  meetings.  But  he  is  the  hard 
est  man  to  write  about  that  there  is  among  them, 
because  you  can  never  tell  what  he  may  happen 
to  say  or  do  next.  It  will  never  do  to  jump  at 
his  conclusions,  and  slip  in  a  neat  little  sentence 
of  your  own  as  coming  from  him  if  }~ou  don't 
happen  to  have  taken  very  profuse  notes,  because 
as  sure  as  you  do  he  will  spring  up  in  some  tire 
some  meeting  in  less  than  a  week  and  unsay  ev 
ery  single  word  that  you  said.  He  said — " 

At  this  point  a  poor  martyr,  who  had  the  mis 
ery  to  sit  directly  in  front  of  these  two  whisper 
ers,  turned  and  gave  them  such  a  look  as  only  a 
man  can  under  like  circumstances,  and  awed 
them  into  five  minutes  of  quiet.  It  lasted  until 
Dr.  Eggleston  was  announced.  Then  Marion's 
tongue  broke  loose  again  : 

"lie  is  the  'Hoosier  Schoolmaster.'  Don't 
you  know  we  read  his  book  aloud  at  the  semi 
nary?  Looks  as  though  he  might  have  written 
it,  doesn't  he  ?  Let's  listen  to  what  he  says.  He 


GO  Four   Girls  at  CJiautauqua. 

always  says  a  word  or  two  that  a  body  can  re 
port  ;  very  few  of  them  do." 

This  is  a  fair  specimen  of  the  way  in  which 
Miss  Wilbur  buzzed  through  that  meeting — that 
wonderful  meeting,  that  Flossy  Shipley  will  re 
member  all  her  life.  She  made  no  answer  to 
Marion's  comments  after  a  little,  and  the  pink 
flush  glowed  deeper  on  her  face.  She  was  won 
derfully  interested  —  indeed  she  was  more  than 
interested.  There  was  a  strange  feeling  of  pain 
at  her  heart,  a  sort  of  sick,  longing  feeling  that 
she  had  never  felt  before,  to  understand  what  all 
these  people  meant,  to  feel  as  they  seemed  to 
feel. 

The  Christian  world  is  more  to  blame  for  the 
unspoken  infidelity  that  thrives  in  its  circles 
than  is  generally  supposed.  Flossy  Shipley  had 
been  in  many  religious  meetings,  but  she  had 
really  never  in  her  life  before  been  among  a  large 
gathering  of  cultured  people,  who  were  eager 
and  excited  and  happy,  and  the  cause  for  that 
eagerness  and  that  happiness  been  found  in  the 
religion  of  Jesus  Christ.  I  do  not  say  that  there 
had  never  been  such  meetings  before,  nor  that 
there  have  not  been  many  of  them.  I  simply 


Fair  point.  61 

say  that  it  was  a  new  revelation  to  Floss}r,  and 
she  had  been  to  the  church  pray er-mee ting  at 
home  several  times.  Whether  that  church  may 
have  been  peculiar  or  not  I  do  not  say,  but  Flossy 
had  certainljr  failed  to  get  the  idea  that  prayer- 
meetings  were  blessed  places ;  that  the  people 
who  went  there  from  week  to  week  found 
their  joy  and  their  rest  and  their  comfort  there. 
She  began  to  have  an  unutterable  sense  of  want 
and  longing  creeping  over  her;  she  stole  shy 
glances  at  Marion  to  see  if  she  felt  this,  but  Mar 
ion  was  absorbed  just  then  in  catching  the  speak 
er's  last  sentence  and  writing  it  down.  Her  face 
expressed  nothing  but  business  earnestness. 
Speech-making  concluded,  there  came  the  "  cove 
nant  service." 

"  I  wonder  what  that  is  supposed  to  be  ? " 
whispered  Marion.  "  It  sounds  like  something 
dreadfully  solemn.  I  hope  they  are  not  going 
to  have  any  scenes.  Revivals  are  not  fashiona 
ble  except  in  the  winter." 

"Marion,  dont!"  Flossy  said,  in  an  earnest 
undertone.  The  gay,  and  what  for  the  first 
time  struck  her  as  the  sacrilegious  words,  chilled 
her.  And  for  almost  the  first  time  in  her  life  she 


62  Four   Crirls  at   Chautauqua. 

uttered  an  unhesitating  remonstrance.  Some 
thing  in  the  tone  surprised  Marion,  and  she 
looked  curiously  down  at  her  little  companion, 
but  said  not  another  word. 

The  covenant  service  was  the  simplest  of  all 
services;  in  fact,  only 'the  singing  of  a  familiar 
hymn  and  the  offering  of  a  prayer.  But  the 
hymn  was  read  first,  in  such  solemn,  tender, 
pleading  tones  as  it  seemed  to  Flossy  she  had 
never  heard  before ;  and  the  singing  rolled 
around  that  great  tent  like  the  voices  of  the  ten 
thousand  who  sing  before  the  throne  —  at  least 
to  Flossy's  heart  it  seemed  like  that.  The 
prayer  that  followed  was  the  simplest  of  all 
prayers  as  to  words,  and  the  briefest  public 
pra}^er  she  ever  remembered  to  have  heard,  and 
it  made  her  feel  as  nothing  in  life  had  ever  done 
before.  She  did  not  understand  the  cause  for 
her  emotion ;  she  was  not  acquainted  with  the 
Spirit  of  God;  she  did  not  know  that  he  was 
speaking  to  her  softened  heart,  and  calling  her 
gently  to  himself,  so  she  felt  ashamed  of  the 
emotion  that  she  could  not  help.  She  wiped 
the  tears  away  secretly,  and  was  glad  that  the 
night  was  dark  and  the  need  for  haste  great,  for 


Fair  point.  63 

the  steamer's  warning  whistle  could  already  be 
beard.  Marion  talked  on  as  they  went  down 
the  hill,  not  alone  now  but  accompanied  by 
hundreds,  talked  precisely  as  she  had  before  the 
singing  of  those  words  and  the  prayer.  "  How 
could  she  ? "  Flossy  wondered.  "  How  could 
anything  look  the  same  to  her  ? "  The  Spirit 
had  found  no  softened  heart  in  which  to  leave  a 
message,  and  so  had  passed  by.  This,  if  Flossy 
had  known  it,  was  the  reason  that  Marion  was 
gay  and  indifferent.  If  either  of  them  had  fully 
realized  the  reason  for  the  different  effect  of  the 
meeting  upon  them,  how  startled  the}'  would 
have  been !  It  is  not  strange  after  all  that  a 
service  is  not  the  same  to  one  soul  that  it  is  to 
another,  when  we  remember  that  God  speaks  to 
one  and  passes  another. 

The  night  was  still  heavy  with  clouds,  not  a 
star  to  lighten  the  gloom ;  a  fine  mist  was  fall 
ing.  It  was  Marion  who  shivered  this  time,  and 
said: 

"  It  is  a  horrible  night,  that  is  a  fact ;  but  I 
am  not  sorry  we  went.  That  meeting  will  write 
up  splendid!}^  though  it  was  too  long;  I  will  say 
that  in  print  about  it.  You  must  find  some 


64  Four   Crirls  at  Chautauqua.  t 

fault,  you  know,  when  you  are  writing  for  tho 
public  ;  it  is  the  fashion." 

"  Was  it  long  ? "  said  Flossy,  in  an  absent 
tone.  She  had  not  thought  of  it  in  that  way. 
Then  she  went  to  the  side  of  the  boat  again  and 
sat  down  in  a  tumult.  What  was  the  matter 
with  her?  Where  had  her  complacent,  pretty 
little  content  gone  ?  Would  she  always  feel  so 
sad  and  anxious  and  unhappy,  have  such  a  long 
ing  as  she  did  now  ?  If  she  had  been  wiser  she 
could  have  told  herself  that  the  trouble  of  heart 
was  caused  by  an  unhealthy  excitement  upon 
this  question,  and  that  this  was  the  great  fault 
with  religious  meetings ;  but  she  was  not  wise, 
she  did  not  think  of  such  a  reason.  If  it  had 
been  suggested  to  her  it  is  doubtful  if,  in  her  ig 
norance,  she  would  not  have  said :  "  Why,  she 
had  been  more  excited  at  an  evening  party  a 
hundred  times  than  she  had  thought  of  being 
then  !  "  She  actually  did  not  know  that  eager 
ness  and  zeal  are  proper  enough  at  parties,  but 
utterly  out  of  place  in  religion.  Just  in  front 

of  her  sat  a  young  man  who  hummed  in  under- 

» 
tone  the  closing  words  of  the  covenant  song.     It 

brought  the   tears  again  to  Flossy 's  eyes.     He 
turned  suddenly  toward  her. 


Pair-point.  65 

u  It  was  a  pleasant  service,"  he  said.  "  Don't 
you  think  so  ?  " 

It  was  rather  startling  to  be  addressed  by  a 
strange  young  gentleman,  or  would  have  been  if 
his  voice  had  not  been  so  quiet  and  dignified,  as 
if  it  were  the  most  natural  thing  in  the  world  to 
compare  notes  with  one  who  had  just  come  out 
irom  the  great  meeting. 

"I  don't  know  whether  it  was  or  not,"  she 
said,  hurriedly.  She  could  not  seem  to  decide 
whether  she  enjoyed  it  or  hated  it. 

"  It  was  blessed  to  me,"  the  young  man  said, 
in  quiet  voice ;  and  added  in  undertone,  as  if 
speaking  to  himself  only  :  "  God  was  there." 

"  Do  you  feel  that  ?  "  said  Flossy,  suddenly. 
"  Then  I  wonder  that  you  were  not  afraid." 

He  turned  toward  her  a  pleasant  face  and 
said,  earnestly : 

"You  would  not  be  afraid  of  your  father, 
would  you  ?  Well,  God  is  my  Father,  my  rec 
onciled  Father;"  And  then,  after  a  moment,  he 
added :  "  If  I  were  not  at  peace  \vith  him,  and 
had  reason  to  think  that  he  was  angry  with  me, 
then  it  would  be  different.  Then  I  suppose  I 
ehomld  be  afraid ;  at  least  I  think  it  would  be 
veasonable  to  be." 


66  Four   Grirls  at   Chautauqua. 

Flossy  spoke  out  of  the  fullness  of  a  troubled 
heart : 

"  I  don't  understand  it  at  all.  I  never  wanted 
to,  either,  until  just  to-night ;  but  now  I  want  to 
feel  as  those  people  did  when  they  sang  that 
hymn." 

Marion  came  quickly  up  from  the  other  side. 

"  Flossy,"  she  said,  with  sudden  sharpness, 
"  come  over  here  and  watch  the  track  of  the 
boat  through  the  water."  And  as  Flossy  me 
chanically  obeyed,  she  added  :  "  What  a  foolish, 
heedless  little  mouse  you  are !  I  wonder  that 
jour  mother  let  you  go  from  her  sight.  Don't 
you  know  that  you  mustn't  get  up  conversations 
with  strange  young  men  in  that  fashion  ?" 

Flossy  had  not  thought  of  it  at  all :  but  now 
she  said  a  little  drearily,  as  if  the  subject  did  not 
interest  her : 

"But  I  have  often  held  conversations  with 
strange  young  men  at  the  dancing-hall,  }TOU 
know,  and  danced  with  them,  too,  when  every 
thing  I  knew  about  them  was  their  names,  and 
generally  I  forgot  that." 

Marion  gave  a  light  laugh. 

"  That  is  different,"  she  said,  letting  her  lip 


Fairpomt.  67 

curl  in  the  darkness  over  the  folly  of  her  own 
words.  "  What  is  proper  at  a  dance  is  very  im 
proper  coming  home  from  prayer-meeting,  don't 
you  see  ?  " 

"  What  do  you  think ! "  she  said  the  minute 
they  were  in  their  rooms.  "  There  was  I,  lean 
ing  meditatively  over  the  boat,  thinking  sol 
emnly  on  the  truths  I  had  heard,  and  that 
absurd  little  water-proof  morsel  was  having  a 
flirtation  with  a  nice  young  man.  Here  is  one 
of  the  fruits  of  the  system  I  What  on  earth  was 
he  saying  to  you,  Flossy  ?  " 

"  Don't ! "  said  Flossy,  for  the  second  time 
that  evening.  "  He  wasn't  saying  any  harm." 

The  whole  thing  jarred  on  her  with  an  inex 
pressible  and  to  her  bewildering  pain.  She  had 
always  been  ready  for  fun  before. 

"  That  girl  is  homesick,  or  something,"  Marion 
said,  as  she  and  Eurie  went  to  their  rooms,  leav 
ing  Flossy  with  Ruth,  who  prefered  her  as  a 
room-mate  to  either  of  the  others  because  she 
could  keep  from  talking. 

"  I  haven't  the  least  idea  what  is  the  matter, 
but  she  has  been  as  unlike  herself  as  possible. 
I  hope  she  isn't  going  to  get  sick  and  spoil  our 


68  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

fun.  Plow  silly  we  were  to  bring  her,  anyway. 
The  baby  hasn't  life  enough  to  see  the  frolic  of 
the  thing,  and  the  intellectual  is  miles  beyond 
her.  I  suspect  she  was  dreadfully  bored  this 
evening.  But,  Eurie,  there  is  going  to  be  some 
splendid  speaking  done  here.  I  shouldn't  won 
der  if  we  attended  a  good  many  of  the  meet- 
ings." 


CHAPTER  V. 

TJNKEST. 

LOSSY   went   to  the  window  and  stood 
looking  out  into  the  starless  night.     The 
pain  in  her  heart  deepened  with  every 
moment. 

"  If  there  was  only  some  one  to  ask,  some  one 
to  sa}r  a  word  to  me,"  she  sighed  to  herself.  "It 
seems  as  though  I  could  never  go  to  sleep  with 
this  feeling  clinging  to  me.  I  wonder  what  can 
be  the  matter  ?  Perhaps  I  am  sick  and  am  go 
ing  to  die.  It  feels  almost  like  that,  and  I  am  not 
fit  to  die  —  I  am  afraid.  I  wonder  if  Ruth  Ers- 
kine  is  afraid  to  die  ?  I  have  almost  a  mind  to 
ask  her.  I  wonder  if  she  ever  prays?  People 
who  are  not  afraid  of  death  are  always  those 
who  pray.  Perhaps  she  will  to-night.  I  feel  as 

though  I  wanted  to  pray  ;  I  think  if  I  only  knew 

(CO) 


70  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

how  it  would  be  just  the  thing  to  do.  If  she 
kneels  down  I  meau  to  go  and  kneel  beside  her." 

These  were  some  of  the  thoughts  that  whirled 
through  her  brain  as  she  stood  with  her  nose 
pressed  to  the  glass.  But  Ruth  did  not  pray. 
She  went  around  with  the  composed  air  of  one 
who  was  at  peace  with  all  the  world;  and  when 
her  elaborate  preparations  for  rest  were  con 
cluded  she  laid  her  head  on  her  pillow  with 
out  one  thought  of  prayer. 

"  Why  in  the  name  of  sense  don't  you  come  to 
bed  ?  "  she  presently  asked,  surveying  with  curi 
ous  glance  the  quiet  little  creature  whose  face 
was  hidden  from  her,  and  who  was  acting  en 
tirely  out  of  accordance  with  anything  she  had 
ever  seen  in  her  before.  "  What  can  you  possi 
bly  find  to  keep  you  gazing  out  of  that  window  ? 
It  can't  be  called  star-gazing,  for  to  my  certain 
knowledge  there  isn't  a  single  star  visible  ;  in 
fact,  I  should  say  nothing  could  be  visible  but 
the  darkness." 

For  a  minute  Flossy  made  no  answer.  She 
did  not  move  nor  turn  her  head ;  but  presently 
she  said,  in  a  low  and  gentle  voice : 

"  Ruth,  should  you  bo  afraid  to  die  ?  " 


Unrest.  71 

"  To  die  !  "  said  Ruth  ;  and  I  have  no  means 
of  telling  you  what  an  astonished  face  and  voice 
she  had.  "  Flossy  Shipley,  what  do  you  mean  ?  " 

"  Wiry,  I  mean  that"  said  Flossy,  in  the  same 
quiet  tone.  "  Of  course  we  have  got  to  die,  and 
everybody  knows  it ;  and  what  I  say  is,  should 
you  be  afraid  if  it  were  to-night,  you  know  ?  " 

"  Humph ! "  said  Ruth,  turning  her  pillow 
and  waiting  to  beat  it  into  shape  before  she  spoke 
further.  "  I  haven't  the  least  idea  of  dying  to 
night." 

"  But  how  can  you  be  sure  of  that  ?  You 
might  have  to  die  to-night,  you  know  people  do 
sometimes." 

"  I  know  one  thing,  am  perfectly  certain  of  it, 
and  that  is,  that  you  will  take  cold  standing 
there  and  making  yourself  dismal.  You  are 
shivering  like  a  leaf,  I  can  see  you  from  here. 
If  that  is  all  the  good  to  be  gotten  from  the  '  re 
ligious  impressions '  that  they  harp  about  being 
so  great  here,  the  less  religion  they  have  the  bet 
ter,  and  there  is  quite  little  enough  you  may  be 
sure."  Saying  which,  Ruth  turned  her  pillow 
again  and  her  head,  so  that  she  could  not  see  the 
small  creature  at  the  window.  She  was  unac- 


72  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

countably  rasped,  not  to  say  startled,  by  her 
question,  and  she  did  not  like  to  be  startled  ;  she 
liked  to  have  her  current  of  life  run  smoothly. 

As  for  Flossy,  she  gave  a  great  sigh  of  disap 
pointment  and  unrest,  and  turned  slowly  from 
the  window.  She  had  vaguely  hoped  for  help 
of  some  sort  from  Ruth,  and  as  she  lay  down  on 
her  prayerless  pillow  she  said  to  herself,  "  If  she 
had  only  knelt  down  I  should  certainly  have 
done  so,  too ;  and  perhaps  I  might  have  been 
helped  out  of  this  dreadful  feeling."  Yet  so  ig 
norant  was  she  of  the  way  that  it  never  once 
occurred  to  her  to  kneel  alone  and  pray. 

No  more  words  were  spoken  by  those  two 
girls  that  night,  but  each  lay  awake  for  a  long 
time  and  tossed  about  restlessly.  Ruth  had  been 
most  effectually  disturbed,  and  try  as  best  she 
could  it  was  impossible  to  banish  the  memory  of 
those  quiet  words :  "You  might  have  to  die  to 
night  ;  people  do,  you  know."  To  actually  have  to 
do  something  that  she  had  not  planned  to  do, 
and  was  not  quite  ready  for,  would  be  a  new  ex 
perience  to  this  girl.  Yet  when  would  she  be 
ready  to  plan  for  dying?  At  last  she  grew 
thoroughly  vexed,  and  vented  her  disgust  on  the 


Unrest.  73 

"  religionists"  who  got  up  camp-meeting  excite 
ments  for  the  purpose  of  turning  weak  brains 
like  Flossy  Shipley's.  After  that  she  went  to 
sleep. 

"  Flossy  Shipley,  for  pity's  sake  don't  rig  your 
self  up  in  that  awful  cashmere  !  It  rains  yet, 
and  you  will  just  be  going  around  with  five 
wrinkles  on  your  forehead  all  day,  besides  spoil 
ing  your  dress." 

It  was  morning,  and  the  door  of  communication 
between  the  two  sleeping-rooms  being  thrown 
open  the  four  girls  were  in  full  tide  of  talk  and 
preparation  for  Fairpoint.  Flossy,  though  kept 
her  strangely  quiet  face  and  manner ;  the 
night  had  not  brought  her  peace  ;  she  had  tossed 
restlessly  for  hours,  and  when  at  last  she  slept  it 
was  only  to  be  haunted  with  troubled  dreams. 
"With  the  first  breath  of  morning  she  opened  her 
eyes  and  -felt  that  the  weight  of  yesterday  was 
still  pressing  on  her  heart. 

"  What  shall  I  wear  ?  "  she  asked,  in  an  absent, 
bewildered  way  of  Eurie,  who  had  objected  to 
the  cashmere. 

"  I'm  sure  I  don't  know.  Didn't  you  bring 
anything  suited  to  the  rain  ?  Let  me  go  fishing 


74  Four  Grirls  at  Chautauqua. 

in  that  ponderous  trunk  and  see  if  I  can't  find 
something." 

The  "  fishing  "  produced  nothing  more  suitable 
than  a  heavy  black  silk,  elaborately  trimmed,  and 
looking,  as  Eurie  phrased  it,  "  elegantly  out  of 
place." 

Through  much  confusion  and  frolicking  the 
four  were  at  last  entering  the  grounds  at  Chau 
tauqua.  By  reason  of  their  superior  knowledge 
Marion  and  Flossy  led  the  way,  while  the  others 
followed  eagerly,  looking  and  exclaiming. 

"I'll  tell  you  what  it  is,  girls,"  Eurie  said, 
eagerly.  "  Let's  come  over  here  and  board. 
We'll  have  a  tent  or  a  cottage.  A  tent  will  be 
jollier,  and  it  will  be  twice  as  much  fun  as  to 
stay  at  the  hotel." 

There  being  no  dissenting  voice  to  this  propo 
sal,  they  started  in  much  glee  to  look  up  a  home  ; 
only  Flossy  demurred  timidly. 

"  Can't  we  go  to  the  meeting,  girls,  and  look 
for  the  tent  afterward  ?  The  meeting  has  com 
menced  ;  I  hear  them  singing." 

"  It's  nothing  in  the  world  but  a  Bible  service," 
Eurie  said.  "That  man  at  the  gate  handed  me 
a  programme.  Who  wants  to  go  to  a  Bible  ser- 


Unrest.  75 

vice  ?  We  have  Bibles  enough  at  home.  We 
want  to  be  on  hand  at  eleven  o'clock,  because 
Edward  Eggleston  is  to  speak  on  '  The  Paradise 
of  Childhood.'  My  childhood  was  anything  but 
paradise,  but  I  am  anxious  to  know  what  he  will 
make  of  it." 

Flossy  succumbed,  of  course,  as  every  one  ex 
pected  she  would ;  and  the  party  went  in  search 
of  tents  and  accommodations.  It  was  no  easy 
matter  to  suit  them,  as  the  patient  and  courteous 
President  found. 

"  I  don't  like  the  location  of  any  one  of  them," 
Ruth  Erskine  said.  Of  course  she  was  the 
hardest  to  suit.  "  Why  can't  we  have  one  of 
those  in  that  row  on  the  hill  ?  " 

"  Those  are  the  guest  tents,  ma'am." 

"  The  guest  tents  ?  "  Eurie  exclaimed,  in  sur 
prise.  "  I  wonder  if  they  entertain  guests  here  ! 
Who  are  they  ?  " 

"  Why,  those  who  have  been  invited  to  take 
part  in  the  exercises,  of  course.  You  did  nob 
suppose  that  they  paid  their  own  expenses  and 
did  the  work  besides,  did  you  ?  " 

This  explanation  was  given  by  Marion,  who, 
by  virtue  of  her  experience  as  reporter  was  bet- 


76  Four   Crirls  at   Chautauqua. 

ter  versed  in  the  ways  of  these  great;  gatherings 
than  the  others. 

"  What  an  idea  !  "  Eurie  said.  "  Fancy  being 
a  guest  and  speaking  at  this  great  meeting  ! 
Being  a  person  of  distinction,  you  know  ;  so  that 
people  would  be  pointing  you  out,  and  telling 
their  neighbors  who  you  were. 

"  There  goes  Miss  Mitchell.  She  is  the  lead 
ing  speaker  on  Sunday-school  books.  How  does 
that  sound?  Only,  on  the  whole,  I  should 
choose  some  other  department  than  Sunday- 
school  books;  they  are  all  so  horridly  good  — 
the  people  in  them,  I  mean  — that  one  can't  get 
through  with  more  than  two  in  a  season.  I  tried 
to  read  one  last  week  for  Sunday,  but  I  aban 
doned  it  in  despair." 

This  was  an  aside,  while  Ruth  was  question 
ing  the  President.  She  was  looking  dismayed. 

"  Can't  we  have  one  of  the  tents  on  that  side, 
near  the  stand  ?  " 

"  Those  were  taken  months  ago.  This  is  a  large 
gathering,  you  know." 

"  I  should  think  it  was  !  Then,  it  seems,  we 
must  go  back  to  the  hotel.  I  thought  you  would 
be  glad  to  let  us  have  accommodations  at  any 
price." 


Unrest.  77 

The  gentlemanly  President  Lere  carefully  re- 
pi  essed  an  amused  smile.  Here  were  people 
who  had  evidently  misunderstood  Chautauqua. 

"  Oh,  yes,"  he  said, 4i  we  can  give  }*ou  accommo 
dations,  only  not  the  very  best,  I  am  sorry  to 
say.  Our  best  tents  were  secured  many  months 
ago.  Still,  we  will  do  the  best  we  can  for  you, 
and  I  think  we  can  make  you  entirely  comfort 
able." 

"  People  have  different  ideas  as  to  the  mean 
ing  of  that  word,"  Miss  Erskine  said,  loftily. 

Then  she  moved  to  another  tent,  over  which 
she  exclaimed  in  dismay  : 

"  Why,  the  bed  isn't  made  up !  Pray,  are  we 
to  sleep  on  the  slats  ?  " 

"  Oh,  no.  But  you  have  to  hire  all  those 
things,  you  know.  Have  you  seen  our  bulletin  ? 
There  are  parties  on  the  ground  prepared  to  fit 
up  everything  that  you  need,  and  to  do  it  very 
reasonably.  Of  course  we  can  not  know  what 
degree  of  expense  those  requiring  tents  care  to 
incur,  so  we  leave  that  matter  for  them  to  decide 
for  themselves.  You  can  have  as  many  or  as 
few  comforts  as  you  choose,  and  pay  accord- 
ingly." 


78  Four   Girls  at   Chautauqua. 

"  And  are  all  four  of  us  expected  to  occupy 
this  one  room  ?  "  There  was  an  expression  of 
decided  disgust  on  Miss  Erskine's  face. 

"  Why,  you  see,"  explained  the  amused  Pres 
ident,  "  this  tent  is  designed  for  four ;  two  good- 
sized  bedsteads  set  up  in  it ;  and  the  necessity 
seems  to  be  upon  us  to  crowd  as  much  as  we  can 
conveniently.  There  will  be  no  danger  of  im 
pure  air,  you  know,  for  you  have  all  out-doors  to 
breathe." 

"  And  you  really  don't  have  toilet  stands  or 
toilet  accommodations!  What  a  way  to  live  !  " 

Another  voice  chimed  in  now,  which  was  the 
very  embodiment  of  refined  horror. 

44  And  you  don't  have  pianos  nor  sofas,  and  the 
room  isn't  lighted  with  gas  !  I'm  sure  I  don't 
see  how  we  can  live  I  It  is  not  what  we  have 
been  accustomed  to." 

This  was  Marion,  with  the  most  dancing  eyes 
in  the  world,  and  the  President  completed  the 
scene  by  laughing  outright.  Suddenly  Ruth 
discovered  that  she  was  acting  the  part  of  a  sim 
pleton,  and  with  flushed  face  she  turned  from 
them,  and  walked  to  a  vacant  seat,  in  the  oppo 
site  direction  from  where  they  were  standing. 


Unrest.  79 

"  We  will  take  this  one,"  she  said,  haughtily, 
without  vouchsafing  it  a  look.  "  I  presume  it  is 
as  good  as  any  of  them,  and,  since  we  are  fairly 
into  this  absurd  scrape  we  must  make  the  best 
of  it." 

"  Or  the  worst  of  it,"  Marion  said,  still  laugh 
ing.  "You  are  bent  on  doing  that,  I  think, 
Ruthie." 

By  a  violent  effort  and  rare  good  sense  Ruth 
controlled  herself  sufficiently  to  laugh,  and  the 
embarrassment  vanished.  There  were  splendid 
points  about  this  girl's  character,  not  the  least 
among  them  being  the  ability  to  laugh  at  a  joke 
that  had  been  turned  toward  herself.  At  least 
the  effect  was  splendid.  The  reasons,  therefore, 
might  have  been  better.  It  was  because  her 
sharp  brain  saw  the  better  effect  that  her  ability 
to  do  this  thing  immediately  produced  on  the 
people  around  her.  But  I  shall  have  to  confess 
that  a  poise  of  character  strong  enough  to  grace 
fully  avert  unpleasant  effects  arising  from  causes 
of  her  own  making  ought  to  have  been  strong 
enough  to  have  suppressed  the  causes. 

The  question  of  an  abiding-place  being  thus 
Bummarily  disposed  of,  the  party  set  themselves 


80  Four   Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

to  work  with  great  energy  to  get  settled,  Marion 
and  Eurie  taking  the  lead.  Both  were  used  to 
both  planning  and  working,  and  Marion  at  least 
had  so  much  of  it  to  do  as  to  have  lost  all  desire 
to  lead  unnecessarily,  and  therefore  everything 
grew  harmonious. 

There  was  a  good  deal  of  genuine  disgust  in 
Ruth's  part  of  it,  though,  her  eyes  having  been 
opened,  she  bravely  tried  to  hide  the  feeling 
from  the  rest.  But  you  will  remember  that  she 
had  lived  and  breathed  in  an  atmosphere  of  ele 
gant  refinement  all  her  life,  accepting  the  luxu 
ries  of  life  as  common  necessities  until  they  had 
really  become  such  to  her,  and  the  idea  of  doing 
without  many  things  that  people  during  camp 
life  necessarily  find  themselves  obliged  to  do 
without  was  not  only  strange  to  her  but  exceed 
ingly  disagreeable.  The  two  leaders  being  less 
used  to  the  extremes  of  luxury,  and  more  indif 
ferent  to  them  by  nature,  could  not  understand 
and  had  little  sympathy  with  her  feeling. 

"  We  shall  have  to  go  back  after  all  to  the 
hotel,"  Eurie  said,  as  she  dived  both  hands  into 
the  straw  tick  and  tried  to  level  the  bed.  "  We 
have  too  fine  a  lady  among  us  ;  she  cannot  sleep 


Unrest.  81 

on  a  bedstead  that  doesn't  rest  its  aristocratic 
legs  on  a  velvet  carpet.  She  doesn't  see  the 
fun  at  all.  I  thought  Flossy  would  be  the  silly 
one,  but  Flossy  is  in  a  fit  of  the  dumps.  I  never 
saw  her  so  indifferent  to  her  dress  before.  See 
her  now,  bringing  that  three-legged  stand,  with 
out  regard  to  rain  !  There  is  one  comfort  in  this 
perpetual  rain,  we  shall  have  less  dust.  After 
all,  though,  I  do-n't  know  as  that  is  any  improve 
ment,  so  long  as  it  goes  and  makes  itself  up  into 
mud.  Look  at  the  mud  on  my  dress !  That 
tent  we  were  looking  at  first  would  have  been 
ever  so  much  the  best,  but  after  Ruth's  silliness 
I  really  hadn't  the  face  to  suggest  a  change  —  I 
thought  we  had  given  trouble  enough.  She 
makes  a  mistake ;  she  thinks  this  is  a  great  ho 
tel,  where  people  are  bound  to  get  all  the  money 
they  can  and  give  as  little  return,  instead  of  its 
being  a  place  where  people  are  striving  to  be  as 
accommodating  as  they  can,  and  give  everybody 
as  good  a  time  as  possible." 

In  the  midst  of  all  this  talk  and  work  they 
left  and  ran  up  the  hill  to  the  Tabernacle,  where 
the  crowds  were  gathering  to  hear  Dr.  Eggleston. 
It  was  a  novel  sight  to  these  four  girls  ;  the  great 


82  Four   Crirls  at   Climtauqua. 

army  of  eager,  strong,  expectant  faces;  the 
ladies,  almost  without  an  exception,  dressed  to 
match  the  rain  and  the  woods,  looking  neither 
tired  nor  annoyed  about  anything  —  looking 
only  in  earnest.  To  Ruth,  especially,  it  came 
like  a  revelation.  She  looked  around  her  with 
surprised  eyes.  There  were  intellectual  faces 
on  every  hand.  There  was  the  hum  of  conver 
sation  all  about  her,  for  the  meeting  was  not  }ret 
opened,  and  the  tone  of  their  words  was  differ 
ent  from  any  with  which  her  life  had  been 
familiar ;  they  seemed  lifted  up,  enthused  ;  they 
seemed  to  have  found  something  worthy  of 
enthusiasm.  As  a  rule  Rutli  had  not  enjoyed 
enthusiastic  people  ;  they  had  seemed  silly  to 
her;  and  you  will  admit  that  there  is  a  silly 
side  to  the  consuming  of  a  great  deal  of  that 
trait  on  the  dress  for  an  evening  party,  or  the 
arrangement  of  programmes  for  a  fancy  concert. 
Just  now  she  had  a  glimmering  fancy  that  there 
might  be  something  worthy  of  arresting  and 
holding  one's  eager  attention. 

"  They  look  alive,"  she  said,  turning  from 
right  to  left  among  the  rows  and  rows  of 
faces.  "  They  look  as  though  they  had  a  good 


Unrest.  8c 

deal  fco  do,  and  they  thought  it  was  worth 
doing." 

Then,  curiously  enough,  there  came  suddenly 
to  her  mind  that  question  which  she  had  ban 
ished  the  night  before,  and  she  wondered  if  these 
people  had  all  really  answered  it  to  their  satis 
faction. 

Flossy  took  a  seat  immediately  in  front  of  the 
speaker.  She  was  hungry  for  something,  and 
she  did  not  know  what  to  call  it  —  something 
that  would  set  her  fevered  heart  at  rest.  As  for 
Marion  and  Eurie,  they  hoped  with  all  their 
hearts  that  the  "  Hoosier  Schoolmaster  "  would 
give  them  a  rich  intellectual  treat,  at  least  Marion 
was  after  the  intellectual.  Eurie  would  be  con 
tented  if  she  got  the  fun,  and  a  man  like  Dr. 
Eggleston  has  enough  of  both  those  elements  to 
make  sure  of  satisfying  their  hopes.  But  would 
he  bring  something  to  help  Flossy  ? 


CHAPTER  VI. 

FEASTS. 

doesn't  look  in  the  least  as  I  thought 
he  did."     It  was  Eurie  who  whispered 
this,  and  she  nudged  Marion's  arm  by  way  of 
emphasis  as  she  did  it. 
Marion  laughed. 

"  How  did  you  think  he  looked  ?  " 
"  Oh,  I  don't  know  —  rough,  rather." 
Whereupon  Marion  laughed  again. 
"  That  is  the  way  some  people  discriminate," 
she  whispered  back.     "You  think   because  he 
wrote  about  rough  people  he  must  be  rough ; 
and  when  one  writes  about  people  of  culture 
and  elegance  you  think  straightway  that  he  is 

the  personification  of  those  ideas.     You  forget, 
(84) 


Feasts.  85 

you  see,  that  the  world  is  full  to  the  brim  with 
hypocrisy;  and  it  is  easier  to  be  perfect  on 
paper  than  it  is  anywhere  else  in  this  world." 

"  Or  to  be  a  sinner  either,  according  to  that 
view  of  it." 

"It  is  easy  enough  to  be  a  sinner  anywhere. 
Hush,  I  want  to  listen." 

For  which  want  the  people  all  about  her  must 
have  been  very  thankful.  Our  young  ladies 
gave  Dr.  Eggleston  their  attention  at  the  mo 
ment  when  he  was  drawling  out  in  his  most 
nasal  and  ludicrous  tones  the  hymn  that  used  to 
be  a  favorite  in  Sunday-schools  ninety  years 
ago:  . 

"  Broad  is  the  road  that  leads  to  death, 
And  thousands  walk  together  there, 

But  wisdom  shows  a  narrow  path, 
With  here  and  there  a  traveler." 

The  manner  in  which  part  of  these  lines  were 
repeated  was  irresistibly  funny.  To  Eurie  ifc 
was  explosively  so ;  she  laughed  until  the  seat 
shook  with  mirth.  To  be  sure,  she  knew  noth 
ing  about  modern  Sunday-schools ;  for  aught 
that  she  was  certain  of,  they  might  have  sung 
that  very  hymn  in  the  First  Church  Sunday- 


86  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

school  the  Sabbath  before ;  and  it  made  not  the 
least  atom  of  difference  whether  they  did  or 
not ;  the  way  in  which  Dr.  Eggleston  was  put 
ting  it  was  funny,  and  Eurie  never  spoiled  fun 
for  the  sake  of  sentiment.  Presently  she  looked 
up  at  Marion  for  sympathy.  That  young  lady's 
eyes  were  in  a  blaze  of  indignation.  What  in 
the  world  was  the  matter  with  her?  Surely 
she,  with  her  hearty  and  unquestioning  belief  in 
nothing,  could  not  have  been  disturbed  by  any 
jar !  Let  me  tell  you  a  wrord  about  Marion. 
Away  back  in  her  childhood  there  was  a  mem 
ory  of  a  little  dingy,  old-fashioned  kitchen,  one 
of  the  oldest  and  dreariest  of  its  kind,  where 
the  chimney  smoked  and  the  winter  wind 
crawled  in  through  endless  cracks  and  crannies ; 
where  it  was  not  always  possible  to  get  enough 
to  eat  during  the  hardest  times  ;  but  there  was 
a  large,  old-fashioned  arm-chair,  covered  with 
frayed  and  faded  calico,  and  in  this  chair  sat 
often  of  a  winter  evening  a  clean-faced  old  man, 
with  thin  and  many-patched  clothes,  with  a 
worn  and  sickly  face,  with  a  few  gray  hairs 
straggling  sadly  about  on  his  smooth  crown; 
and  that  old  man  used  often  and  often  to  drone 


Feasts.  87 

out  in  a  cracked  voice  and  in  a  tune  pitched  too 
low  by  half  an  octave  the  very  words  which  had 
just  been  repeated  in  Marion's  hearing.  What 
of  all  that?  Why,  that  little  gloomy  kitchen  was 
Marion's  memory  of  home ;  that  old,  tired  man 
was  her  father,  and  he  used  to  sing  those  words 
while  his  hand  wandered  tenderly  through  the 
curls  of  her  brown  head,  and  patted  softly  the 
white  forehead  over  which  they  fell ;  and  all  of 
love  that  there  was  in  life,  all  that  the  word 
"  tenderness  "  meant,  all  that  was  dear,  or  sweet, 
or  to  be  reverenced,  was  embodied  in  that  one 
memory  to  Marion.  Now  you  understand  the 
flashing  eyes.  She  did  not  believe  it  at  all ;  she 
believed,  or  thought  she  did,  that  the  "  broad  " 
and  "  narrow  "  roads  were  all  nonsense  ;  that  go 
where  you  would,  or  do  what  you  would,  all  the 
roads  led  to  death;  and  that  was  the  end.  But 
the  father  who  had  quavered  through  those  lines 
so  many  times  had  staked  his  hopes  forever  on 
that  belief,  and  the  assurance  of  it  had  clothed 
his  face  in  a  grand  smile  as  he  lay  dying — a 
smile  that  she  liked  to  think  of,  that  she  did  not 
like  to  hear  ridiculed,  and  to  her  excited  imagin 
ation  Dr.  Eggieston  seemed  to  be  ridiculing  the 
faith  on  which  the  hymn  was  built. 


88  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

"  They  are  more  thorough  hypocrites  than  I 
supposed,"  she  saici,  in  scorn,  and  hardly  in  un 
dertone,  in  answer  to  Eurie's  inquiring  look. 
"I  don't  believe  the  stuff  myself,  but  I  always 
supposed  the  ministers  did.  I  gave  some  of 
them  at  least  credit  for  sinceritj^,  but  it  seems  it 
is  nothing  but  a  fable  to  be  laughed  to  scorn." 

"  Why,  Marion  ! "  Eurie  said,  and  her  look 
expressed  surprise  and  dismay.  "  He  is  not 
making  fun  of  religion,  you  know  ;  he  is  simply 
referring  to  the  inappropriateness  of  such  hymns 
for  children." 

"  What  is  so  glaringly  inappropriate  about  it 
if  they  really  believe  the  Bible?  I'm  sure  it 
says  there  that  there  are  two  roads,  one  broad 
and  the  other  narrow ;  and  that  many  people 
are  on  one  and  but  few  on  the  other.  Why 
shouldn't  it  be  put  into  a  hymn  if  it  is  desirable 
to  impress  it  ?  " 

"  I'm  sure  I  don't  know,"  Eurie  said,  unac 
customed  to  being  put  through  a  course  of  logic. 
"Only,  you  know,  I  suppose  he  simply  means 
that  it  is  beyond  their  comprehensions." 

"  They  must  have  remarkably  limited  compre 
hensions  then  if  they  are  incapable  of  undei- 


Feasts.  89 

standing  so  simple  a  figure  of  speech,  as  that 
there  are  two  ways  to  go,  and  one  is  harder  and 
safer  than  the  other.  I  understood  it  when  it 
was  sung  to  rne  —  and  I  was  a  very  little  child 
• — and  believed  it,  too,  until  I  saw  the  lives  of 
people  contradict  it ;  but  if  I  believed  it  still  I 
would  not  make  public  sport  of  it." 

At  this  point  Huth  leaned  forward  from  the 
seat  behind  and  whispered : 

"  Girls,  do  keep  still ;  you  are  drawing  the  at 
tention  of  all  the  people  around  you  and  disturb 
ing  everybody." 

After  that  they  kept  still ;  but  the  good  doc 
tor  had  effectually  sealed  one  heart  to  whatever 
that  was  tender  and  earnest  he  might  have  to 
say.  She  sat  erect,  with  scornful  eyes  and  glow 
ing  cheeks,  and  when  the  first  Hush  of  excite 
ment  passed  off  was  simply  harder  and  gayer 
than  before.  Who  imagined  such  a  result  as 
that?  Nobody,  of  course.  But  how  perfectly 
foolish  and  illogical !  Couldn't  she  see  that  Dr. 
Eggieston  only  meant  to  refer  to  the  fact  that 
literature,  both  of  prose  and  poetry,  had  been 
improved  by  being  brought  to  the  level  of  child 
ish  minds,  and  to  reprove  that  way  of  teaching 


90  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

religious  truth,  that  leaves  a  somber,  dismal  im 
pression  on  3'outhful  hearts  ?  Apparently  she 
could  not,  sinco  she  did  not.  As  for  being  ab 
surd  and  illogical,  I  did  not  say  that  she  wasn't. 
I  am  simply  giving  you  facts  as  they  occurred. 
I  think  myself  that  she  was  dishonoring  the 
memory  of  her  father  ten  thousand  times  more 
than  any  chance  and  unmeant  word  of  the 
speakers  could  possibly  have  done.  The  only 
trouble  was,  that  she  was  such  an  idiot  she  did 
not  see  it ;  and  she  prided  herself  on  her  powers 
of  reasoning,  too  !  But  the  world  is  full  of  idi 
ots.  She  sat  like  a  stone  during  the  rest  of  the 
brilliant  lecture.  Many  things  she  heard  because 
she  could  not  help  hearing ;  many  she  admired, 
because  it  was  in  her  to  admire  a  brilliant  and 
charming  thing,  and  she  could  not  help  that, 
either ;  but  she  could  shut  her  heart  to  all  ten 
derness  of  feeling  and  all  softening  influences, 
and  that  she  did  with  much  satisfaction,  deliber 
ately  steeling  herself  against  the  words  of  a  man 
because  he  had  quoted  a  chance  line  that  her 
father  used  to  sing,  while  she  lived  every  day  of 
her  life  in  defiance  of  the  principles  by  which 
her  father  shaped  his  life  and  his  death !  Verily, 
the  ways  of  girls  are  beyond  understanding. 


Feasts.  91 

Eurie  enjoyed  it  all.  When  Dr.  Eggleston 
told  of  the  men  that,  as  soon  as  their  children 
grew  a  little  too  restless,  had  business  down 
town,  she  clapped  her  hands  softly  and  whis 
pered  : 

"  That  is  for  all  the  world  like  father.  Neddie 
and  Puss  were  never  in  a  whining  fit  in  their 
lives  that  father  didn't  at  once  think  of  a  pa 
tient  he  had  neglected  to  visit  that  day,  and 
rush  off." 

She  laughed  over  the  thought  that  women 
were  shut  in  with 'lit  tie  steam  engines,  and  said  : 

"  That's  a  capital  name  for  them  ;  we  have 
three  at  home  that  are  always  just  at  the  very 
point  of  explosion.  I  mean  to  write  to  mother 
and  tell  her  I  have  found  a  new  name  for  them." 

When  he  suggested  the  blunt-end  scissors, 
and  the  colored  crayons  with  which  they  could 
make  wonderful  yellow  dogs,  with  green  tails 
and  blue  eyes,  her  delight  became  so  great  that 
she  looked  around  to  Ruth  to  help  her  enjoy  it, 
and  said : 

"  You  see  if  I  don't  invest  in  a  ton  of  colored 
crayons  the  very  first  thing  I  do  when  I  get 
home  ;  it  is  just  capital  1  So  strange  I  never 
thought  of  it  before." 


92  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

"  You  did  not  think  of  it  now,"  Ruth  said,  in 
her  quiet  cooling  way.  "  Give  the  speaker 
credit  for  his  own  ideas,  please.  Half  the  world 
have  to  do  the  thinking  for  the  other  half  al 
ways." 

"  That  is  the  reason  so  much  is  left  undone, 
then,"  retorted  Eurie,  with  unfailing  good  hu 
mor,  and  turned  back  to  the  speaker  in  time  to 
hear  his  description  of  the  superintendent  that 
was  so  long  in  finding  the  place  to  sing  that  the 
boys  before  him  went  around  the  world  while  he 
was  giving  the  number. 

"  Slow  people,"  said  she,  going  down  the  hill 
afterward.  "  I  never  could  endure  them,  and  I 
shall  have  less  patience  with  them  in  future  than 
ever.  Wasn't  he  splendid?  Rath,  you  liked 
the  part  about  Dickens,  of  course." 

"  A  valuable  help  the  lecture  v/ill  be  to  your 
after-life  if  all  you  have  got  is  an  added  feeling 
of  impatience  toward  slow  people.  Unfor 
tunately  for  you  they  are  in  the  world,  and  will 
be  very  likely  to  stay  in  it,  and  a  very  good  sort 
of  people  they  are,  too." 

It  was  Marion  who  said  this,  and  her  tone  was 
dry  and  unsympathetic. 


Feasts.  93 

Enrie  turned  to  her  curiously. 

"  You  didn't  like  him,"  she  said,  "  did  you  ? 
I  am  so  surprised ;  I  thought  you  would  think 
him  splendid.  On  your  favorite  hobb}^  too.  I 
said  to  myself  this  will  be  just  in  Marion's  line. 
She  has  so  much  to  say  about  teaching  children 
by  rote  in  a  dull  and  uninteresting  way.  You 
couldn't  forgive  him  for  reciting  that  horrid  old 
hymn  in  such  a  funny  way.  Flossy,  do  you 
suppose  you  can  ever  hear  that  hymn  read  again 
without  laughing?  What  was  the  matter,  Mar 
ion  ?  Who  imagined  you  had  any  sentimental 
drawings  toward  Watts'  hymns  ?  " 

"I  didn't  even  know  it  was  Watts'  hymn," 
Marion  said,  indifferently.  "  But  I  hate  to  hear 
any  one  go  back  on  his  own  belief.  If  he  hon 
estly  believes  in  the  sentiments  of  that  verse,  and 
they  certainly  are  Bible  sentiments,  he  shouldn't 
make  fun  of  it.  But  I'm  sure  it  is  of  no  conse 
quence  to  me.  He  may  make  fun  of  the  whole 
Bible  if  he  chooses,  verse  by  verse,  and  preach  a 
melting  sermon  from  it  the  very  next  Sabbath ; 
it  will  be  all  the  same  to  me.  Let  us  go  in 
search  of  some  dinner,  and  not  talk  any  more 
about  him." 


94  Four  Girls  at  Chauiauqua. 

"  But  that  isn't  fair.  You  are  unjust,  isn't  she, 
Ruth  ?  I  say  he  didn't  make  fun  of  religion,  as 
Marion  persists  in  saying  that  he  did." 

"  Of  course  not,"  Ruth  said.  "  A  minister 
would  hardly  be  guilty  of  doing  that.  He  was 
simply  comparing  the  advanced  methods  of  the 
present  with  the  stupidity  of  the  past." 

And  obstinate  Marion  said  then  he  ought  to 
get  a  new  Bible,  for  the  very  same  notions  were 
in  it  that  were  when  she  was  a  child  and  learned 
verses.  And  that  was  all  that  this  discussion 
amounted  to.  Nobody  had  appealed  to  Flossy. 
She  had  stood  looking  with  an  indifferent  air 
around  her,  until  Marion  turned  suddenly  and 
said: 

"  What  did  the  lecture  say  to  you,  Flossy  ? 
Eurie  seems  very  anxious  to  get  out  of  it  some 
thing  for  our  'special  needs,'  as  they  say  in 
church.  What  was  yours  ?  " 

Flossy  hesitated  like  a  timid  child,  flushed 
and  then  paled,  and  finally  said,  simply  : 

"  I  have  been  thinking  ever  since  he  spoke  it 
of  that  one  sentence,  '  Rock-firm,  God-trust,  has 
died  out  of  the  world.'  I  was  wondering  if  it 
were  tiue,  and  I  was  wishing  that  it  wasn't." 


Feasts.  95 

All  the  girls  looked  at  each  other  in  astonished 
silence  ;  such  a  strange  thing  for  Flossy  to  sa}r. 

"  What  of  it  ? "  said  Marion,  presently. 
"  What  if  it  has  ?  or,  rather,  'what  if  it  were 
never  in  the  world  ?  " 

"  It  wasn't  that  side  of  it  that  I  thought  about. 
It  was  what  if  it  were." 

"  And  what  then  ?  " 

"  Why,  then,  I  should  like  to  see  the  person 
who  had  it,  just  to  see  how  he  would  seem." 

Marion  laughed  somewhat  scornfully. 

"  Curiosity  is  at  the  bottom  of  your  wise 
thought,  is  it  ?  Well,  my  little  mousie,  I  am 
amazingly  afraid  you  are  destined  never  to  dis 
cover  how  it  will  seem.  So  I  wouldn't  puzzle 
my  brains  about  it.  It  might  be  too  much  for 
them.  Shall  we  go  to  dinner  ?  " 

You  should  have  seen  our  four  young  ladies 
taking  their  first  meal  at  Chautauqua !  It  was 
an  experience  not  to  be  forgotten.  They  wenb 
to  the  Ci  hotel."  This  was  a  long  board  building, 
improvised  for  the  occasion,  and  filled  with  as 
man}*-  comforts  as  the  necessities  of  the  occasion 
could  furnish.  To  Miss  Erskine  the  word 
*4  hotel"  had  only  one  sort  of  association.  She 


96  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

had  been  a  traveler  in  her  own  country  only, 
and  it  had  been  her  fortune  to  be  intimate  only 
with  the  hotels  in  large  cities,  and  only  with 
those  where  people  go  whose  purses  are  full  to 
overflowing.  So  she  had  come  to  associate  with 
the  name  all  that  was  elegant  or  refined  or  lux 
urious. 

When  the  President  of  the  grounds  inquired 
whether  they  would  have  tickets  for  the  hotel  or 
one  of  the  boarding-houses,  Miss  Erskine  had 
answered  without  hesitation : 

"  For  the  hotel,  of  course.  I  never  have  any- 
thing  to  do  with  boarding-houses.  They  are  al 
most  certain  to  be  second  rate." 

Said  President  kept  his  own  counsel,  think 
ing,  I  fancy,  that  here  was  a  girl  who  needed 
some  lessons  in  the  practical  things  of  this  life, 
and  Chautauqua  hotels  were  good  places  in 
which  to  take  lessons. 

Imagine  now,  if  you  can,  the  look  of  this 
lady's  face,  as  they  made  their  way  with  much 
difficulty  down  the  long  room,  and  looked  about 
them  on  either  side  for  seats. 

"  A  hotei>  indeed ! "  she  said,  in  utter  con 
tempt  and  disgust,  as  one  of  the  attendants  sig- 


Feasts.  97 

naled  them  and  politely  drew  back  the  long 
board  seat  that  did  duty  in  the  place  of  chairs, 
and  answered  for  five,  or,  if  you  were  good  na- 
tured  and  crowded,  for  six  people.  He  was  just 
as  polite  in  his  attentions  as  if  the  unplaned  seat 
had  been  a  carved  chair  of  graceful  shape  and 
pattern.  One  would  suppose  that  Ruth  might 
have  taken  a  hint  from  his  example.  But  the 
truth  is,  she  belonged  to  that  class  of  people  who 
are  so  accustomed  to  polite  attentions ,  that  it  is 
only  their  absence  which  calls  forth  remark. 

"  The  idea  of  naming  this  horrid,  dirty  old  lum 
ber-room  a  hotel ! "  and  she  carefully  and  dis 
dainfully  spread  her  waterproof  cloak  on  the 
seat  before  she  took  it. 

Eurie's  merry  laugh  rang  out  until  others 
looked  and  smiled  in  sympathy  with  her  fun, 
whatever  it  was. 

"  What  irf  the  world  did  you  expect,  Ruthie  ? 
I  declare,  you  are  too  comical !  I  verily  believe 
you  expected  Brussels  carpets,  and  mirrors  in 
which  you  could  admire  yourself  all  the  while 
you  were  eating." 

" I  expected  a  hotel"  Ruth  said,  in  no  wise 
diminishing  her  lofty  tone.  "  That  is  what  is 


98  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

advertised,  and  people  naturally  do  not  look  for 
so  much  deception  in  a  religious  gathering. 
This  is  nothing  in  the  world  but  a  shanty." 

Chautauqua  was  doing  one  thing  for  this 
young  lady  which  surprised  and  annoyed  her. 
It  was  helping  her  to  get  acquainted  with  her 
self.  Up  to  this  time  she  had  looked  upon  her 
self  as  a  person  of  smooth  and  aven  tempera 
ment,  not  by  any  means  easily  ruffled  or  turned 
from  herquiet  poise.  She  had  prided  herself  on 
her  composed,  gracefully  dignified  way  of  receiv 
ing  things.  She  never  hurried,  she  never  was 
breathless  and  flushed,  and  apologetic  over  some 
thing  that  she  ought  or  ought  not  to  have  done, 
which  was  a  chronic  state  with  Eurie.  She  never 
was  in  a  thorough  and  undisguised  rage,  as  Mar 
ion  was  quite  likely  to  be.  She  was,  in  her  own 
estimation,  a  model  of  propriety.  All  this  until 
she  came  to  Chautauqua.  Now,  great  was  her 
surprise  to  discover  in  herself  a  disposition  to  be 
utterly  disgusted  with  things  that  to  Marion 
were  of  so  little  consequences  as  to  be  unno 
ticed,  and  that  to  Eurie  were  positive  sources 
of  fun. 

Doubtless  you  understand  her  better  than  she 


Feasts.  99 

did  herself.  The  truth  is,  it  is  a  comparatively 
easy  matter  to  be  gracious  and  courteous  and 
unruffled  when  everything  about  you  is  moving 
exactly  according  to  your  mind,  and  when  you 
can  think  of  nothing  earthly  to  be  annoyed 
about.  There  are  some  natures  that  are  deceiv 
ing  their  own  hearts  in  just  such  an  atmosphere 
as  this.  They  are  not  the  lowest  type  of  nature 
by  any  means.  The  small,  petty  trials  that 
come  to  every  life  are  beneath  them.  If  it  rains 
when  they  want  to  walk  they  can  go  in  a  hand 
some  carriage,  and  keep  their  tempers.  If  their 
elegant  new  robes  prove  to  be  badly  made  they 
can  have  them  remodeled  and  made  more  ele 
gant  with  a  superior  composure.  In  just  so  far 
are  they  above  the  class  who  can  endure  noth 
ing  in  the  shape  of  annoyances  or  disappoint 
ment,  however  small.  The  fact  is,  however, 
that  there  are  petty  annoyance,  not  coming  in 
their  line  of  life,  that  would  be  altogether  too 
much  for  them.  But  of  this  they  remain  in 
graceful  ignorance  until  some  Chautauqua  brings 
the  sleeping  shadows  to  the  surface. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

TABLE   TALK. 

IIAT  is  your  private  explanation  of  the 
word  'hotel'?"  Marion  asked.  She 
was  in  an  argumentative  mood,  and  it  made  al 
most  no  difference  to  her  which  side  of  the  ques 
tion  she  argued.  "  Webster  says  it  is  a  place  to 
entertain  strangers,  but  you  seem  to  attach  some 
special  importance  to  the  term." 

«  Is  that  all  that  Webster  says  ?" 

The  questioner  was  not  Ruth,  but  a  man  who 
sat  just  opposite  to  them  at  the  table,  and  while 
he  waited  for  his  order  to  be  filled  watched  with 
amused  eyes  the  four  girls  who  were  evidently 
in  a  new  element.  He  was  not  a  young  man,  and 

his  gray  hairs  would  have  arrested  the  pertnesa 
(100) 


Table  Talk.  101 

of  the  reply  on  Marion's  tongue  at  an}>-  other 
time  than  this,  but  you  remember  that  she  was 
not  in  a  good  mood.  She  answered  promptly ; 

"  Yes,  sir,  he  says  ever  so  many  things.  In 
fact,  he  is  the  most  voluminous  author  I  ever 
read." 

The  gentleman  laughed.  The  pertness  seemed 
to  amuse  him. 

"  Didn't  I  limit  my  question  ?  "  he  said,  pleas 
antly.  "  He  is  voluminous,  and  what  a  sensible 
book  he  has  written.  I  wish  all  authors  had 
given  us  so  much  information.  But  I  meant,  is 
that  all  he  says  about  hotels  ?  Doesn't  he  jus 
tify  your  friend  just  a  little  bit  in  her  expecta 
tions  ?  " 

"  I'm  sure  I  don't  know,"  Marion  said,  amused 
in  turn  at  the  good-natured  interest  which  the 
elderly  gentleman  took  in  the  question.  "  He 
has  said  so  much  that  I  haven't  had  time  to  di 
gest  it  all.  If  you  have,  won't  you  please  en 
lighten  me  as  to  his  wisdom  on  this  subject?" 

" 4  Especially  one  of  some  style  or  pretensions,' " 
quoted  the  old  gentleman,  "  so  Webster  adds. 
You  see  I  am  interested  in  the  subject,"  and  he 
laughed  pleasantly.  "  I  have  been  looking  it  up, 


Girls  at  CJiautauqua. 

which  must  be  my  apology  for  addressing  you 
young  ladies,  if  so  old  a  man  as  I  must  apologize 
for  being  interested  in  girls.  The  fact  is,  I  had 
occasion  to  talk  with  a  young  man  yesterday  who 
took  the  people  to  task  most  roundly  for  that 
very  name,  on  the  ground  that  they  had  no  right 
to  it  —  that  it  was  a  misnomer.  I  Lave  been 
struck  with  the  thought  that  nothing  is  trivial, 
not  even  the  name  that  happens  to  be  chosen  for 
a  house  where  one  waits  for  his  dinner,"  with  a 
strong  emphasis  on  the  word  "  wait,"  which  Eu- 
rie  understood  and  laughed  over. 

"  Except  the  remarks  that  people  make  about 
such  things,"  Marion  said,  answering  the  first 
part  of  the  sentence  and  bestowing  a  wicked 
glance  on  Ruth.  "  They  are  trivial  enough.  Did 
you  agree  with  the  young  gentleman  ?  " 

"  No.  I  thought  it  all  over  and  consulted 
Webster,  as  I  said,  and  came  to  the  conclusion 
that  in  view  of  this  being  a  more  pretentious 
house  than  either  of  the  others  they  had  a  right 
to  the  word.  Webster  doesn't  say  what  degree 
of  pretension  is  necessary,  you  know." 

The  lifting  of  Ruth's  eyebrows  at  this  point 
was  so  expressive  that  all  the  party  laughed. 


Table  Talk.  103 

But  the  old  gentleman  grew  grave  again  in  a 
moment,  as  he  said : 

"But  the  thought  that  impressed  me  most  was 
what  a  very  perfect  system  of  faith  the  religion 
of  Jesus  Christ  is  ;  how  completely  it  commends 
itself  to  the  human  heart,  since  the  very  slight- 
ess  departure  from  what  is  regarded  as  strictly 
true  and  right,  when  it  is  done  by  a  Christian 
(society  or  individual),  is  noticed  and  com 
mented  upon  by  lookers-on ;  they  seem  to  know 
of  a  certainty  that  it  is  not  according  to  the 
Spirit  of  Christ." 

This  last  sentence  struck  Marion  dumb.  How 
fond  she  was  of  caviling  at  Christian  lives ! 
Was  she  really  thus  giving  all  the  time  an  un 
conscious  tribute  to  the  truth  and  purity  of  the 
Christian  faith  ? 

It  was  a  merry  dinner,  after  all,  eaten  with 
steel  forks  and  without  napkins,  and  with  plated 
spoons,  if  you  were  so  fortunate  as  to  secure 
one.  The  rush  of  people  was  very  great,  and, 
with  their  inconvenient  accommodations,  the 
process  of  serving  was  slow. 

Marion,  her  eyes  being  opened,  went  to  study 
ing  the  people  about  her.  She  found  that  court- 


104  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

ecus  good-humor  was  the  rule,  and  selfishness 
and  ungraciousness  the  exception.  Inconven 
iences  were  put  up  with  and  merrily  laughed 
over  by  people  who,  from  their  dress  and  man 
ners,  could  be  accustomed  to  only  the  best. 

Marion  took  mental  notes. 

"  They  do  not  act  in  the  least  like  the  mass  of 
people  who  stop  at  railroad  eating-houses  for 
their  dinner;  they  are  patient  and  courteous 
under  difficulties ;  they  did  not  come  here  for 
the  purpose  of  being  entertained ;  if  they  did 
the  accommodations  wouldn't  satisfy. " 

There  was  another  little  thing  that  interested 
Marion.  As  the  tables  kept  filling,  and  those 
who  had  been  served  made  room  for  those  who 
had  not,  she  found  herself  watching  curiously 
what  proportion  of  the  guests  observed  that 
instant  of  silent  thanks  with  covered  eyes.  It 
was  so  brief,  so  slight  a  thing,  I  venture  that 
scarcely  a  person  there  noticed  it,  much  less 
imagined  that  there  was  a  pair  of  keen  gray  eyes 
over  in  the  corner  looking  and  calculating  con 
cerning  them. 

"  What  if  they  all  had  to  wear  badges,"  she 
said  to  herself,  "  badges  that  read  '  I  am  a  Cluis- 


Table  Talk.  105 

tian,'  I  wonder  how  many  of  them  it  would  in 
fluence  to  different  words  than  they  are  speak 
ing,  or  to  different  acts?  I  wonder  if  they  do 
all  wear  them  ?  I  wonder  if  the  distinction  is 
really  marked,  so  one  looking  on  could  detect 
the  difference,  though  all  of  them  are  strangers  ? 
I  mean  to  watch  during  these  two  weeks.  '  The 
proper  study  of  mankind  is  man.'  Very  well, 
Brother  Pope,  a  convenient  place  for  the  study 
of  man  is  Chautauqua.  I'll  take  it  up.  Who 
knows  but  I  may  learn  a  new  branch  tb  teach 
the  graded  infants  in  Ward  No.  4." 

Ruth  did  not  recover  her  equanimity.  She 
was  rasped  on  every  side.  Those  two-tined 
steel  forks  were  a  positive  sting  to  her.  She 
shuddered  as  the  steel  touched  her  lips.  She 
had  no  spoon  at  all,  and  she  looked  on  in  utter 
disgust  while  Eurie  merrily  stirred  her  tea  with 
her  fork.  When  the  waiter  came  at  last,  with 
hearty  apologies  for  keeping  them  waiting  for 
their  spoons,  and  the  old  gentleman  said  cor 
dially,  "  All  in  good  time.  We  shall  not  starve 
even  if  we  get  no  spoons,"  she  curled  her  lip 
disdainfully,  and  murmured  that  she  had  always 
been  accustomed  to  the  conveniences  of  life,  and 
found  it  somewhat  difficult  to  do  without  them. 


106  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

When  one  is  in  the  mood  for  grumbling  there 
is  no  easier  thing  in  the  world  than  to  find  food 
for  that  spirit,  and  Ruth  continued  her  pastime, 
waxing  louder  and  more  decided  after  the  genial 
old  man  had  left  their  neighborhood. 

O 

"  What  is  the  use  in  fault-finding  ?  "  Eurie 
said  at  last,  half  petulantly.  She  was  growing 
very  tired  of  this  exhibition.  "What  did  you 
expect  ?  They  are  doing  as  well  as  they  can, 
without  any  doubt.  Just  imagine  what  it  must 
be  to  get  conveniences  together  for  this  vast 
crowd.  They  did  not  expect  anything  like  such 
a  large  attendance  at  first ;  I  heard  them  say  so  ; 
and  that  makes  it  harder  to  wait  upon  them. 
But  of  course  they  are  doing  just  as  well  as  they 
can,  and  we  fare  as  well  as  any  of  them." 

"  Don't  you  be  so  foolish  as  to  believe  that," 
Ruth  said,  with  a  curling  lip.  "  If  you  could 
see  behind  the  scenes  you  would  soon  discover 
something  very  different.  That  is  why  it  is  so 
provoking  to  me.  Let  people  who  cannot  afford 
to  pay  any  better  take  such  as  they  can  get. 
But  what  right  had  they  to  suppose  that  we  had 
not  the  money  to  pay  for  what  we  wish  ?  Tin 
sure  Fm  not  a  pauper  1  You  will  find  that  there 


Table  Talk.  107 

is  a  place  where  the  select  few  can  get  what  they 
want,  and  have  it  served  in  a  respectable  man 
ner,  and  I  say  I  don't  like  it ;  I  have  been  accus 
tomed  to  the  decencies  of  life." 

Just  behind  them  the  talk  was  going  on  un 
ceasingly,  and  one  voice,  at  this  point,  rising 
higher  than  the  others,  caught  the  attention  of 
our  girls.  Eurie  turned  suddenly  and  tried  to 
catch  a  glimpse  of  the  speaker.  Something  in 
the  voice  sounded  natural.  A  sudden  move 
ment  on  the  part  of  the  gentleman  between 
them  and  she  caught  a  glimpse  of  the  face.  She 
turned  back  eagerly. 

"  Girls,  that  is  Mrs.  Schuyler  Germain  !  " 

"  Where  ?  "  Ruth  asked,  with  sudden  interest 
in  her  voice. 

"  Over  at  that  table,  in  a  water-proof  cloak 
and  black  straw  hat,  and  eating  boiled  potatoes 
with  a  steel  fork.  What  about  being  behind  the 
scenes  now,  Ruthie  ?  " 

To  fully  appreciate  this  you  must  understand 
that  even  among  the  Erskines  to  get  as  high  as 
Mrs.  S chuly er  Germain  was  to  get  as  high  as 
the  aristocracy  of  this  world  reached ;  not  that 
she  lived  in  any  grander  style  than  the  Erskines, 


108  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua* 

or  showed  that  she  had  more  mone}r,  but  every 
one  knew  that  her  bank  accounts  were  very 
heavy,  and,  besides,  she  was  the  daughter  of  Gen. 
Wads  worth  Hilly  er,  of  Washington,  and  the 
great-granddaughter,  by  direct  descent,  of  one  of 
England's  noblemen.  She  was  traveled  and 
cultivated,  and  all  but  titled  through  her  young 
est  daughter. 

Could  American  ambition  reach  higher  ?  And 
there  she  sat,  at  a  table  made  of  pine  boards, 
eating  boiled  potatoes  with  a  two-tined  steel 
fork  I  Could  English  nobility  sink  lower  !  Ruth 
looked  over  at  her  in  quiet  surprise  for  a  mo 
ment,  and  then  gave  her  head  its  haughty  toss 
as  she  met  Eurie's  mischievous  eyes,  and  said : 

"  It  is  not  an  aristocracy  of  position  here, 
then.  The  leaders  keep  all  their  nice  things  and 
places  for  themselves.  That  is  smaller  than  I 
supposed  them  to  be." 

At  this  particular  moment  there  was  an  up 
rising  from  the  table  just  behind  them.  Half  a 
dozen  gentlemen  leaving  their  empty  plates,  and 
in  full  tide  of  talk,  making  their  way  down  the 
hall.  The  girls  looked  and  nudged  each  other 
as  they  recognized  them.  The  younger  of  the 


Table  Talk.  109 

two  foremost  had  a  face  that  can  not  easily  be 
mistaken,  and  Eurie,  having  seen  it  once,  did 
not  need  Marion's  low-toned,  "  That  is  Mr.  Yin- 
cent."  And  Ruth  herself,  thrown  off  her  guard, 
recognized  and  exclaimed  over  Dr.  Hodge. 

This  climax  was  too  much  for  Eurie.  She 
threw  down  her  fork  to  clap  her  hands  in  softly 
glee.* 

"  Oh,  Ruthie,  Ruthie  !  How  has  your  dismal 
castle  of  favoritism  faded !  Yonder  is  the  Queen 
of  American  society  eating  pie  at  this  very  in 
stant  with  the  very  fork  which  did  duty  on  her 
potato,  and  here  goes  the  King  of  the  feast,  wip 
ing  his  lips  on  his  own  handkerchief  instead  of  a 
damask  napkin." 

It  was  at  this  moment,  when  Ruth's  follies 
and  ill  humors  were  rising  to  an  almost  unbear 
able  height,  that  her  higher  nature  asserted  it 
self,  and  shone  forth  in  a  rich,  full  laugh.  Then, 
in  much  glee  and  good  feeling,  they  followed  the 
crowd  down  the  hill  to  the  auditorium. 

For  the  benefit  of  such  poor  benighted  beings 
as  have  never  seen  Chautauqua,  let  me  explain 
that  the  auditorium  was  the  great  temple  where 
the  congregation  assembled  for  united  service. 


110  Four   Girls  at  Ohautauqua. 

Such  a  grand  temple  as  it  was !  The  pillars 
thereof  were  great  solemn  trees,  with  their 
green  leaves  arching  overhead  in  festoons  of 
beauty.  I  don't  know  how  many  seats  there 
were,  nor  how  many  could  be  accommodated  at 
the  auditorium.  Eurie  set  out  to  walk  up  and 
down  the  long  aisles  one  day  and  count  the 
seats,  but  she  found  that  which  so  arrested  her 
attention  before  she  was  half-way  down  the  cen 
tral  aisle  that  she  forgot  all  about  it,  and  there 
was  never  any  time  afterward  for  that  work.  I 
mean  to  tell  you  about  that  day  when  I  get  to 
it.  The  grand  stand  was  down  here  in  front  of 
all  these  seats,  spacious  and  convenient,  the  pil 
lars  thereof  festooned  with  flags  from  many 
nations.  The  large  piano  occupied  a  central 
point ;  the  speaker's  desk  at  its  feet,  in  the  cen 
ter  of  the  stand ;  the  reporters'  tables  and  chairs 
just  below. 

"  I  ought  to  have  one  of  those  chairs,"  Marion 
said,  as  they  passed  the  convenient  little  space 
railed  off  from  the  rest  of  the  audience.  "  Just 
as  if  I  were  not  a  real  reporter  because  I  write 
in  plain  good  English,  instead  of  racing  over  the 
paper  and  making  queer  little  tracks  that  only 


Table  Talk.  Ill 

one  person  in  five  thousand  can  read.  If  I  were 
not  the  most  modest  and  retiring  of  mortals  I 
would  go  boldty  up  and  claim  a  seat." 

"What  is  to  be  next?"  Ruth  asked.  "Are 
we  supposed  to  be  devoted  to  all  these  meet 
ings?  I  thought  we  were  only  going  to  one 
now  and  then.  We  won't  be  alive  in  t\ro 
weeks  from  now  if  we  pin  ourselves  down  here." 

"In  the  way  that  we  have  been  doing," 
chimed  in  Eurie.  "  Just  think,  here  we  have 
been  to  everj^  single  meeting  they  have  had  yet, 
except  the  one  last  night  and  one  this  morning." 

"  We  are  going  to  skip  every  one  that  we  pos 
sibly  can,"  said  Marion.  "  But  the  one  that  is 
to  come  just  now  is  decidedly  the  one  that  we 
can't.  The  speaker  is  Dr.  Calkins,  of  Buffalo. 
I  heard  him  four  years  ago,  and  it  is  one  of  the 
few  sermons  that  I  remember  to  this  day.  I 
always  said  if  I  ever  had  another  chance  I 
should  certainly  hear  him  again.  I  like  his  sub 
ject  this  afternoon,  too.  It' is  appropriate  to  my 
condition." 

"What  is  the  subject?"  Flossy  asked,  with  a 
sudden  glow  of  interest. 

"  It  is   what  a   Christian   can   learn  from  a 


112  Four   Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

heathen.  I'm  the  heathen,  arid  I  presume  Dr. 
Calkins  is  the  Christian.  So  he  is  to  see  what 
he  can  learn  from  me,  I  take  it,  and  naturally  I 
am  anxious  to  know.  Flossy  isn't  interested  in 
that;  I  can  see  it  from  her  face.  She  knows 
she  isn't  a  heathen  —  she  is  a  good  proper  little 
Christian.  But  it  is  your  duty,  my  dear,  to  find 
what  you  can  learn  from  me." 

"  What  can  he  possibly  make  of  such  a  sub 
ject  as  that?  "  Ruth  asked,  curiously.  "  I  don't 
believe  I  want  to  hear  him.  Is  he  so  very  tal 
ented,  Marion  ?  " 

"  I  don't  know.  Haven't  the.  least  idea 
whether  he  is  what  you  call  talented  or  not. 
He  says  things  exactly  as  though  he  knew  they 
were  so,  and  for  the  time  being  he  makes  you 
feel  as  though  you  were  a  perfect  simpleton  for 
not  knowing  it,  too." 

"  And  you  like  to  be  made  to  feel  like  a  '  per 
fect  simpleton?'  Is  that  the  reason  you  re 
solved  to  hear  him  again  ?  " 

"  I  like  to  meet  a  man  once  in  a  while  wiio 
knows  how  to  do  it,  and  for  the  matter  of  that  I 
wouldn't  mind  being  made  to  feel  the  truth  of 
the  things  that  he  says,  if  one  could  only  stay 


Table  Talk.  113 

made.  It  isn't  the  fault  of  the  preaching  that  it 
all  feels  like  a  pretty  story  and  nothing  else  ;  it 
is  the  fault  of  the  wretched  practicing  that  the 
sheep  go  home  and  do.  It  makes  one  feel  like 
being  an  out-and-out  goat,  and  done  with  it, 
instead  of  being  such  a  perfect  idiot  of  a  sheep." 

At  this  point  the  talk  suddenly  ceased,  for  the 
leaders  began  to  assemble,  and  the  service  com 
menced.  Ruth  and  Marion  exchanged  comic 
glances  when  they  discovered  the  "  heathen  "  of 
the  afternoon  to  be  Socrates.  And  Marion  pre- 
sentty  whispered  that  she  was  evidently  to  play 
the  character  of  the  old  fellow's  wife,  and  Eurie 
whispered  to  them  both  : 

"  Xow  I  want  to  know  if  that  horrid  Zantippe 
was  Socrates'  wife  I  Upon  my  word  I  never 
knew  it  before.  She  wasn't  to  blame,  after  all, 
for  being  such  a  wretch." 

"  What  do  you  mean  ? "  Marion  whispered 
back,  with  scornful  eyes.  "Socrates  was  the 
grandest  old  man  that  ever  lived." 

"  Pooh !  He  wasn't.  He  didn't  know  any 
more  than  little  mites  of  Sunday-school  children 
do  nowdays.  I  never  could  understand  why  his 
philosophy  was  so  remarkable,  only  that  he  lived 


114  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

in  a  heathen  country  and  got  ahead  of  all  the 
rest,  but  if  he  were  living  now  he  would  be  a 
pigmy." 

"  I  wish  he  were,"  Marion  said,  with  her  eyes 
still  flashing.  "  I  would  like  to  see  such  a  life 
as  he  lived." 

This  girl  was  a  hero  worshiper.  Her  cheeks 
could  burn  and  her  eyes  glow  over  the  grand 
stories  of  old  heathen  characters,  and  she  could 
melt  to  tears  over  their  trials  and  wrongs.  And 
yet  she  passed  by  in  haughty  silence  the  sub 
lime  life  that  of  all  others  is  the  only  perfect  one 
on  record,  and  she  had  no  tears  to  shed  over  the 
shameful  and  pitiful  story  of  the  cross.  What 
a  strange  girl  she  was !  I  wonder  if  it  be  possi 
ble  that  there  are  any  others  like  her  ? 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

"AT   EVENING  TIME  IT   SHALL  BE  BRIGHT." 

a 

^ 

'ig  MEANTIME  Flossy  Shipley  came  to  no 
place  where  her  heart  could  rest.  She 
went  through  that  first  day  at  Chautauqua  in  a 
sort  of  maze,  hearing  and  yet  not  hearing,  and 
longing  in  her  very  soul  for  something  that  she 
did  not  hear  —  that  is,  she  did  not  hear  it  dis 
tinctly  and  fairly  stated,  so  that  she  could  grasp 
it  and  act  upon  it ;  and  yet  it  was  shadowed  all 
around  her,  and  hinted  at  in  every  word  that 
was  uttered,  so  that  it  was  impossible  to  forget 
that  there  was  a  great  something  in  which  the 
most  of  these  people  were  eagerly  interested,  and 

which  was  sealed  to  her. 

(115) 


116  Four  Gfirls  at  (Jhautauqua. 

She  felt  it  dimly  all  the  while  that  Dr.  Eg- 
gleston  was  speaking ;  she  felt  it  sensibly  when 
they  sang  ;  she  felt  it  in  the"  chance  words  that 
caught  her  ear  on  every  side  as  the  meeting 
closed  —  bright,  fresh  words  of  greeting,  of  glad 
ness,  of  satisfaction,  but  every  one  of  them  con 
taining  a  ring  that  she  could  hear  but  not  copy. 
What  did  it  mean  ?  And,  above  all,  why  did 
she  care  what  it  meant,  when  she  had  been  happy 
all  her  life  before  without  knowing  or  thinking 
anything  about  it  ? 

As  they  went  down  the  hill  to  dinner,  she 
loitered  somewhat  behind  the  others,  thinking 
while  they  talked.  As  the  throng  pressed  down 
around  them  there  came  one  whose  face  she 
instantly  recognized ;  it  belonged  to  the  young 
man  who  had  spoken  to  her  on  the  boat  the 
evening  before.  The  face  recalled  the  earnest 
words  that  he  had  spoken,  and  the  tone  of  rest 
ful  satisfaction  in  which  they  were  spoken.  His 
face  wore  the  same  look  now  —  interested,  alert, 
but  at  rest.  She  coveted  rest.  It  was  clear  that 
he  also  recognized  her,  and  something  in  her 
wistful  eyes  recalled  the  words  she  had  spoken. 

"  Have  you  found  the  Father's  presence  y et  ?  " 


"At  Evening  Time  it  Shall  be  Bright"    117 

lie  asked,  with  a  reverent  tone  to  Ins  voice  when 

• 

he  said  "  the  Father,"  and  yet  with  such  evident 
trust  and  love  that  the  tears  started  to  her  eyes. 

She  answered  quickly : 

"  No,  I  haven't.  I  cannot  feel  that  he  is  my 
Father." 

They  went  down  the  steps  just  then,  and  the 
crowd  rushed  in  between  them,  so  that  neither 
knew  what  had  become  of  the  other ;  only  that 
chance  meeting;  he  might  never  see  her  again. 
Chautauqua  was  peculiarly  a  place  where  peo 
ple  met  for  a  moment,  then  lost  each  other,  per 
haps  for  all  the  rest  of  the  time. 

"  I  may  never  see  her  again,"  Evan  Roberts 
thought,  "  but  I  am  glad  that  I  said  a  word  to 
her.  I  hope  in  my  soul  that  she  will  let  Him 
find  her." 

If  Flossy  could  have  heard  this  unspoken  sen 
tence  she  would  have  marveled.  "  Let  Him  find 
her !  "  Why,  she  was  dimly  conscious  that  she 
was  seeking  for  Him,  but  no  such  thought  had 
presented  itself  as  that  God  was  really  seeking 
after  her. 

She  went  on,  still  falling  behind,  and  trying  to 
hide  the  rush  of  feeling  that  the  simple  question 


118  Four   Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

had  called  forth.  She  was  very  quiet  at  the 
dinner  table ;  she  was  oblivious  to  steel  forks  or 
the  want  of  spoons ;  these  things  that  had  hith 
erto  filled  her  life  and  looked  of  importance  to 
her  had  strangely  dwindled ;  she  was  miserably 
disappointed;  she  had  looked  forward  to  Chau 
tauqua  as  a  place  where  she  could  have  such  a 
"  nice  "  time.  That  word  "  nice  "  was  a  favorite 
with  her,  and  surely  no  one  could  be  having  a 
more  wretched  time  than  this ;  and  it  was  not 
the  rain,  either,  over  which  she  had  been  miser 
able  all  day  yesterday,  nor  her  cashmere  dress  ; 
she  didn't  care  in  the  least  now  whether  it  cleared 
or  not ;  and  as  to  her  dress,  she  had  torn  her 
silk  twice,  and  it  was  sadly  drabbled,  but  she 
did  not  even  care  for  that ;  she  wanted  —  what  ? 
Alas  for  the  daughter  of  nominally  Christian 
parents,  living  among  all  the  privileges  of  a  cul 
tured  Christian  society,  she  did  not  know  what  she 
wanted. 

Dr.  Calkins  had  one  eager  listener.  If  he 
could  have  picked  out  her  earnest,  wistful  eyes 
among  that  crowd  of  upturned  faces  he  would 
have  let  old  Socrates  go,  and  given  himself  heart 
and  soul  to  the  leading  of  this  groping  soul  into 


"At  Evening  Time  it  Shall  be  Bright."    119 

fho  light.  As  it  was  he  hovered  around  it, 
touching  the  subject  here  and  there,  thrilling 
.her  with  the  possibilities  stretching  out  before 
her  ;  but  he  was  thinking  of  and  talking  all  the 
while  to  those  who  had  reached  after  and  secured 
this  "  something  "  that  to  her  was  still  a  shadow. 
Now  and  then  the  speaker  brought  the  quick 
tears  to  her  eyes  as  he  referred  to  those  who  had 
followed  the  teaching  of  his  lips  with  sympa 
thetic  faces  and  answered  the  appeal  to  their 
hearts  with  tears ;  but  her  tears  were  different 
from  those — they  were  the  tears  of  a  sick  soul, 
longing  for  light  and  help. 

The  entire  party  ignored  the  evening  meeting. 
Marion  declared  that  her  brain  whirled  now,  so 
great  had  been  the  mental  strain ;  Ruth  was 
loftily  indifferent  to  any  plan  that  could  be  got 
ten  up,  and  Eurie's  wits  were  ripe  for  mischief; 
Flossy's  opinion,  of  course,  was  not  asked,  nobody 
deeming  it  possible  that  she  could  have  the 
slightest  desire  to  go  to  meeting.  In  fact,  Eurie 
put  their  desertion  on  the  ground  that  Flossy 
had  been  exhausted  by  the  mental  effort  of  the 
day,  and  needed  to  be  cheered  and  petted.  She 
on  her  part  was  silent  and  wearily  indifferent; 


120  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

she  did  not  know  what  to  do  with  her  heavy 
heart,  and  felt  that  she  might  as  soon  walk  down 
by  the  lake  shore  as  do  anything  else  ;  so  down 
to  the  shore  they  went,  and  gave  themselves  up 
to  the  full  enjoyment  of  the  novel  scene  —  an 
evening  in  the  woods,  great,  glowing  lights  on 
every  side,  great  companies  of  people  passing  to 
and  fro,  boats  touching  at  the  wharves  and  send 
ing  up  group  after  group  to  the  central  attrac 
tion,  the  grand  stand ;  singing,  music  by  thou 
sands  of  voices  ringing  »down  to  them  as  they 
loitered  under  the  trees  on  the  rustic  seats. 

"  I  declare,  it  must  be  nice  in  heaven  for  a  lit 
tle  while." 

It  was  Eurie  who  made  this  somewhat  startling 
discovery  and  announcement  after  a  lull  had 
fallen  upon  their  mirth. 

"  Have  you  been  there  to  see  ? "  illogically 
asked  Marion,  as  she  threw  a  tiny  stone  into 
the  water  and  watched  the  waves  quiver  and 
ripple. 

Eurie  laughed. 

"  Not  quite,  but  this  must  be  a  little  piece  of 
it — this  music,  I  mean.  I  am  almost  tempted 
to  make  an  effort  after  the  real  thing.  How  ex- 


"At  Evening  Time  it  Shall  be  Bright"    121 

quisitely  those  voices  sound !  I'm  very  certain 
I  should  enjoy  the  music,  whether  I  should  be 
able  to  get  along  with  the  rest  of  the  programme 
or  not.  What  on  earth  do  you  suppose  they  do 
there  all  the  time,  anyway  ?  " 

"  Where  ?  " 

"  Why,  in  heaven,  of  course  ;  that  is  what  I 
was  talking  about.  I  believe  you  are  half 
asleep,  Flossy  Shipley  ;  you  mustn't  go  to  sleep 
out  here  ;  it  isn't  quite  heaven  yet,  and  you  will 
take  cold.  Honestly,  girls,  isn't  it  a  sort  of  won 
derment  to  }-ou  how  the  people  up  there  can  em 
ploy  their  time  ?  In  spite  of  me  I  cannot  help 
feeling  that  it  must  be  rather  stupid ;  think  of 
never  being  able  to  lie  down  and  take  a  nap  !  " 

"  Or  read  a  novel,"  added  Marion.  "  Isn't  that 
your  favorite  employment  when  you  are  awake, 
Eurie  ?  I'm  sure  I  don't  know  much  about  the 
occupations  of  the  place  $  I'm  not  posted ;  there 
is  nothing  about  it  laid  down  in  our  geography  ; 
and,  in  fact,  the  people  who  seem  to  be  expect 
ing  to  spend  their  lives  there  are  unaccountably 
mum  about  it.  I  don't  at  this  moment  remember 
hearing  any  one  ever  express  a  downright  opin 
ion,  and  I  have  always  thought  it  rather  queer. 


122  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

I  asked  Nellie  Wheden  about  it  one  day  wlien 
she  was  going  on  about  her  expected  tour  in 
Europe.  She  had  bored  me  to  death,  making 
me  produce  all  my  geographic  and  historic  lore 
for  her  benefit ;  and  suddenly  I  thought  of  an 
expedient  for  giving  myself  a  little  peace  and  a 
chance  to  talk  about  something  else.  '  Come^ 
Nellie,'  I  said,  '  one  good  turn  deserves  another. 
I  have  told  you  everything  I  can  think  of  that 
can  possibly  be  of  interest  to  you  about  Europe  ; 
now  give  me  some  information  about  the  other 
place  where  you  are  going.  You  must  have 
laid  up  a  large  stock  of  information  in  all  these 
years.' " 

"  What  on  earth  did  she  say  ?  "  Kuth  asked, 
curiously,  while  Eurie  was  in  great  glee  over  the 
story. 

"  She  was  as  puzzled  as  if  I  had  spoken  to  her 
in  Greek.  '  What  in  the  world  can  you  be  talk 
ing  about  ?  '  she  said.  '  I'm  not  going  anywhere 
else  that  I  know  of.  My  head  has  been  full  of 
Europe  for  the  last  year,  and  I  haven't  talked 
nor  thought  about  any  other  journey.'  Well,  I 
enlightened  her  as  to  her  expectations,  and  what 
do  you  think  she  said  ?  You  wouldn't  be  able 


"At  Evening  Time  it  Shall  be  Bright"    123 

to  guess,  so  I'll  tell  you.  She  said  I  was  irrev- 
erent,'and  that  no  one  who  respected  religion 
would  ask  such  questions  as  that,  and  she  actu 
ally  went  off  in  a  huff  over  my  wickedness.  So, 
naturally,  I  have  been  chary  of  trying  to  get 
information  on  such  'reverent*  subjects  ever 
since." 

"Whereupon  all  these  silly  young  ladies 
laughed  long  and  heartily  over  this  silly  talk. 
Flossy  laughed  with  the  rest,  partly  from  the 
force  of  habit  and  partly  because  this  recital 
struck  her  as  very  foolish.  Every  one  of  them 
saw  its  inconsistent  side  as  plainly  as  though 
they  had  been  Christians  for  years  ;  more  plainly, 
perhaps,  for  it  is  very  strange  what  blinded  eyes 
we  can  get  under  certain  systems  of  living  the 
religious  faith. 

Presently  the  society  of  these  young  ladies 
palled  upon  themselves,  and  they  agreed  one  with 
another  that  they  had  been  very  silly  not  to  go 
to  meeting,  and  that  another  evening  they  would 
at  least  discover  what  was  being  said  before  they 
lost  the  opportunity  for  getting  seats. 

"  Stupid  set ! "  said  Eurie  "  who  imagined  that 
the  crowd  would  do  such  a  silly  thing  as  to  rush 


124  Four  G-irls  at  Chautauquz. 

to  that  meeting,  as  if  there  were  nothing  else  to 
do  but  to  go  flying  off  for  a  seat  the  moment  the 
Dell  rings  ?  I  thought  there  would  be  crowds 
out  here,  and  we  would  make  some  pleasant 
acquaintances,  and  perhaps  get  a  chance  to  take 
a  boat  ride." 

And  so,  in  some  disgust,  they  voted  to  bring 
the  first  day  at  Chautauqua  to  a  sudden  close  and 
try  tent  life. 

Silence  and  darkness  reigned  in  the  tent 
where  our  girls  had  disposed  of  themselves.  It 
was  two  hours  since  they  had  come  in.  It  took 
more  than  an  hour,  and  much  talking  and  more 
laughter,  not  to  mention  considerable  grumbling 
on  Ruth's  part,  before  everything  was  arranged 
to  their  satisfaction  —  or,  as  Ruth  expressed  it, 
"  to  their  endurance  "  for  the  night. 

Three  of  the  girls  were  sleeping  quietly,  their 
fun  and  their  discontents  alike  forgotten,  but 
Flossy  tossed  wearily  on  her  bed,  turned  her 
pillow  and  turned  it  back  again,  and  sought  in 
vain  for  a  quiet  spot.  With  the  silence  and  the 
darkness  her  unrest  had  come  upon  her  again 
with  tenfold  force.  She  felt  no  nearer  a  solu 
tion  of  her  trouble  than  she  had  in  the  morning ; 


"At  Evening  Time  it  Shall  be  Bright''    125 

ID  fact,  the  pain  had  deepened  all  day,  and  the 
only  definite  feeling  she  had  about  it  now  was 
that  she  could  not  live  so  ;  that  something  must 
be  done ;  that  she  must  get  back  to  her  home 
and  her  old  life,  where  she  might  hope  to  forget 
it  all  and  be  at  peace  again. 

•  Into  the  quiet  of  the  night  came  a  firm,  manly 
step,  and  the  movement  of  chairs  right  by  her 
side,  so  at  least  it  seemed  to  her.  All  unused  to 
tent  life  as  she  was,  a  good  deal  startled  she 
raised  herself  on  one  elbow  and  looked  about  her 
in  a  frightened  way  before  she  realized  that  the 
sounds  came  from  the  tent  next  to  theirs.  Be 
fore  her  thoughts  were  fairly  composed  they  were 
startled  anew ;  this  time  with  the  voice  of 
prayer. 

Very  distinct  the  words  were  on  this  still 
night  air ;  every  sentence  as  clear  as  though  it 
had  really  been  spoken  in  the  same  tent.  Now, 
there  was  something  peculiar  in  the  voice  ;  clearly 
cut  and  rounded  the  words  were,  like  that  of  a 
man  very  decided,  very  positive  in  his  views,  and 
very  earnest  in  his  life.  There  was  also  a  mod 
ulation  to  the  syllables  that  Flossy  could  not 
describe,  but  that  she  felt.  And  she  knew  that 


126  Four  Grirls  at  Chautauqua. 

she  had  heard  that  voice  twice  before,  once  on 
the  boat  the  evening  before  and  once  as  they 
jostled  together  in  the  crowd  on  their  way  to 
dinner. 

She  felt  sorry  to  be  unwittingly  a  listener  to 
a  prayer  that  the  maker  evidently  thought  was 
being  heard  only  by  his.  Savior.  But  she  could' 
not  shut  out  the  low  and  yet  wonderfully  dis 
tinct  sentences,  and  presently  she  ceased  to  wish 
to,  for  it  became  certain  that  he  was  praying  for 
her.  He  made  it  very  plain.  He  called  her 
"  that  young  girl  who  said  to-day  that  she  could 
not  think  of  thee  as  her  Father ;  who  seems  to 
want  to  be  led  by  the  hand  to  thee." 

Did  you  ever  hear  yourself  prayed  for  by  an 
earnest,  reverent,  pleading  voice  ?  Then  per 
haps  you  know  something  of  Flossy's  feelings  as 
she  lay  there  in  the  darkness.  She  had  never 
heard  any  one  pray  for  her  before.  So  destitute 
was  she  of  real  friends  that  she  doubted  much 
whether  there  were  one  person  living  who  had 
ever  before  earnestly  asked  God  to  make  her  his 
child. 

That  was  what  this  prayer  was  asking.  She 
lifted  the  white  sleeve  of  her  gown,  and  wiped 


"At  Evening  Time  it  Shall  be  Bright."    127 

away  tear  after  tear  as  the  pleading  voice  Trent 
on.  Very  still  she  was.  It  seemed  to  her  that 
she  must  not  lose  a  syllable  of  the  prayer,  for 
here  at  last  was  the  help  she  had  been  seeking, 
blindly,  and  without  knowing  that  she  sought, 
all  this  long,  heavy  day.  Help  ?  Yes,  plain, 
clear,  simple  help.  How  small  a  thing  it  seemed 
to  do  !  "  Show  her  her  need  of  thee,  blessed 
Jesus,"  thus  the  prayer  ran.  And  oh !  hadn't 
he  showed  her  that?  It  flashed  over  her  troub 
led  brain  then  and  there  :  "  It  is  Jesus  that  I 
need.  It  is  he  who  can  help  me.  I  believe  he 
can.  I  believe  he  is  the  only  one  who  can." 
This  was  her  confession  of  faith.  "  Then  lead 
her  to  ask  the  help  of  thee  that  she  needs.  Just 
to  come  to  thee  as  the  little  child  would  go  to 
her  mother,  and  say,  '  Jesus,  take  me  ;  make  me 
thy  child.'  "  Only  that  ?  Was  it  such  a  little, 
little  thing  to  do  ?  How  wonderful ! 

The  praying  ceased,  and  the  young  man  who 
had  remembered  the  stranger  to  whom  God  had 
given  him  a  chance  to  speak  during  the  day,  all 
unconscious  that  other  ear  than  God's  had  heard 
his  words  of  prayer,  laid  himself  down  to  quiet 
sleep.  Flossy  lay  very  still.  The  rain  had 


128  Four  Grirls  at   Chautauqua. 

ceased  during  the  afternoon,  and  now  some  sol 
emn  stars  were  peeping  in  through  the  chinks  in 
the  tent  and  the  earth  was  moon-lighted.  She 
raised  herself  on  one  elbow  and  looked  around 
on  her  companions.  How  soundly  asleep  they 
were ! 

Another  few  minutes  of  stillness  and  irresolu 
tion.  Then  a  white-robed  figure  slipped  softly 
and  quietly  to  the  floor  and  on  her  knees,  and  a 
low-whispered  voice  repeated  again  and  again 
these  words : 

"  Jesus,  take  me  ;  make  me  thy  child." 
It  wasn't  very  long  afterward  that  she  lay 
quietly  down  on  her  pillow,  and  earth  went  on 
exactly  as  if  nothing  at  all  had  happened  —  knew 
nothing  at  all  about  it  —  even  the  sleeper  by  her 
side  was  totally  ignorant  of  the  wonderful  tab 
leau  that  had  been  acted  all  about  her  that  eve 
ning.  But  if  Eurie  Mitchell  could  have  had  one 
little  peep  into  heaven  just  then  what  would  her 
entranced  soul  have  thought  of  the  music  and  the 
enjoyment  there  ?  For  what  must  it  be  like 
when  there  is  "joy  in  the  presence  of  the  angel 
in  heaven  "  ? 


CHAPTER  IX. 

FLEEING. 

HE  next  morning  every  one  of  them  ran 
awaJ  fr°m  the  meeting.  The  way  of  it 
was  this :  as  they  came  up  from  breakfast  and 
stood  at  the  tent-door  discussing  the  question 
whether  they  would  go  to  the  early  meeting, 
Mrs.  Duane  Smithe  passed,  glanced  up  at  them 
carelessly,  then  looked  back  curiously,  and  at 
last  turned  and  came  back  to  them. 

"I  beg  pardon,"  she  said,  "but  isn't  this  Miss 
Erskine  ?  It  surely  is  !  I  thought  I  recognized 
your  face,  but  couldn't  be  sure  in  these  strange 
surroundings.  And  you  have  a  party  with  you  ? 
How  delightful !  We  were  just  wishing  for 
more  ladies.  I  really  don't  think  it  is  going  to 
rain  much  to-day,  and  we  have  a  lovely  prospect 
in  view.  You  must  certainly  join  us." 

(129) 


180  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

Then  followed  introductions  and  explanations. 
Mrs.  Duane  Smithe  was  a  Saratoga  acquaintance 
of  Ruth.  Erskine,  and  was  en  route  'for  James 
town  for  the  day. 

"  Where  is  Jamestown  ?  "  queried  Eurie,  who 
was  a  very  useful  member  of  society,  in  that  she 
never  pretended  knowledge  that  she  did  not 
possess,  so  that  you  had  only  to  keep  still  and 
listen  to  the  answers  that,  were  made  to  her 
questions  in  order  to  know  a  good  deal. 

"  It  is  at  the  head  of  this  lovely  little  lake,  or 
at  the  foot,  I'm  sure  I  don't  know  which  way  co 
call  it,  and  it  is  nothing  of  consequence,  of 
course,  but  the  ride  thither  is  said  to  be  charm 
ing,  and  we  are  going  to  take  a  lunch,  and  pic 
nic  in  a  private  way,  just  for  the  fun  of  getting 
together,  you  know,  in  a  more  social  manner 
than  one  can  accomplish  in  this  wilderness  of 
people.  Isn't  it  a  queer  place,  Miss  Erskine? 
I  am  dying  to  know  how  you  happened  to  come 
here." 

Ruth  arched  her  eyebrows. 

"  I   confess  it  is  almost  as  strange  as  what 
brought  you  here,"  she  said,  smiling. 

"  I  can  answer  that  in  an  instant.     I  have  a 


.Fleeing.  181 

ridiculous  nephew  here,  who  thought  that  a 
week  of  meetings  from  morning  to  night  would 
be  just  a  trifle  short  of  paradise,  so  what  did  he 
do  but  smuggle  us  all  off  this  way.  I  shall  find 
it  a  bore,  of  course,  and  the  only  way  to  get 
through  with  it  is  to  have  little  pleasure  excur 
sions  like  the  one  we  propose  to-day." 

Now  you  know  as  much  about  Mrs.  Duane 
Sruithe  as  though  I  should  write  about  her  for  a 
week.  It  is  strange  how  little  we  have  to  say 
before  we  have  explained  to  people  not  only  our 
intellectual  but  our  moral  status.  Our  girls,  you 
will  remember,  had  as  little  regard  for  the  meet 
ings  as  girls  could  have,  and  they  had  by  this 
time  begun  to  feel  themselves  in  a  strange  at 
mosphere,  without  acquaintances  or  gentlemanly 
attentions,  so  it  took  almost  no  persuasion  at  all 
to  induce  them  to  join  Mrs.  Smithe's  party,  com 
posed  of  two  young  ladies  and  four  young  gen 
tlemen.  It  would  be  difficult  to  explain  to  you 
what  a  disappointment  the  decision  to  spend  the 
day  in  frolic,  instead  of  going  to  the  meetings, 
was  to  Flossy.  All  the  morning  her  heart  had 
been  in  a  great  flutter  of  happiness  over  the 
beautiful  day  that  stretched  out  before  her.  To 


132  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

meet  those  earnest,  eager  people  again,  to  hear 
those  hymns,  to  hear  the  voice  of  prayer  all 
about  her,  to  hear  the  constant  allusions  that 
were  so  strange  and  so  saddening  to  her  yester 
day,  and  that  now  she  understood,  how  blessed 
it  would  be  !  She  had  gone  about  the  bewil 
derments  of  her  toilet  in  a  tent  with  a  serenely 
happy  face,  and  almost  unawares  had  hummed 
the  refrain  of  a  tune  that  had  already  shown  it 
self  a  favorite  at  Chautauqua. 

"Flossy  is  like  herself  this  morning,"  Eurie 
said,  as  she  heard  the  happy  little  song.  "  I 
think  she  has  recovered  from  her  home-sick- 
ness." 

Tents  are  not  convenient  places  in  which  to 
make  private  remarks.  Flossy  overheard  this 
one  and  smiled  to  herself.  Yes,  she  had  gotten 
over  her  home-sickness — she  had  found  home. 
She  gave  a  little  exclamation  of  dismay  as  she 
heard  the  plannings  for  the  da}^  and  said  : 

"  But,  Ruth,  what  about  the  meetings  ?  " 

"  Well,"  Ruth  had  said,  with  her  most  pro- 
vokingly  nonchalant  air,  "  I  haven't  made  any 
inquiry,  but  I  presume  they  will  continue  them 
all  day  just  the  same  as  if  we  were  here.  I 


Fleeing.  133 

don't  think  they  will  change,  the  programme  on 
our  account." 

And  Eurie  had  added,  mischievously: 

"Flossy  is  afraid  it  is  not  the  aristocratic 
thing  to  do,  not  to  stay  to  all  the  meetings." 

"  Oh,  as  to  that,"  Mrs.  Smithe  had  said  (she 
was  one  of  those  interesting  people  who  always 
take  remarks  seriously),  "  I  assure  you  it  is 
what  the  first  people,  on  the  ground  are  doing. 
Of  course  none  of  them  would  be  so  absurd  as 
to  think  of  attending  meetings  all  the  time. 
The  brain  wouldn't  endure  such  a  strain." 

"  Of  course  not,"  Marion  had  answered  with 
gravity.  "My  brain  is  already  very  tired.  I 
think  yours  must  be  exhausted." 

Flossy  meditated  a  daring  resolution  to  stay 
behind  and  take  her  "  rest "  in  the  way  she  cov 
eted  ;  but  the  impossibility  of  explaining  what 
would  appear  to  the  others  as  merely  an  ill- 
natured  freak,  and  occasion  no  end  of  talk,  de 
terred  her,  and  with  slow,  reluctant  steps  she 
followed  the  merry  group  down  to  the  wharf. 

If  those  people  had  stopped  long  enough  to 
think  of  it,  this  disposal  of  themselves  would 
Lave  had  its  ludicrous  side.  Certainly  it  was  a 


1C4  Four   Crirls  at   Chautauqua. 

strange  fancy  to  ?un  away  twenty  miles  with 
lunches  done  up  in  paper  in  search  of  a  picnic, 
when  Chautauqua  was  one  great  picnic  ground, 
stretching  out  before  them  in  beauty  and  conven 
ience.  But  the  entire  group  belonged  to  that 
class  of  people  for  whom  the  fancy  of  the  mo 
ment,  whatever  it  may  be,  has  infinite  charms. 

There  was  plenty  of  room  on  the  Colonel 
Phillips.  Very  few  people  were  traveling  in 
that  direction. 

"It  is  really  queer,"  the  Captain  was  over 
heard  to  say,  "  to  take  a  party  away  from  the 
grounds  at  this  hour  of  the  day." 

"  What  an  enthusiastic  set  of  people  they  are 
about  here,"  Eurie  said  to  Mr.  Rawson,  one  of 
Mrs.  Smitbe's  party,  as  they  paced  the  deck  to 
gether.  "  The  people  all  talk  and  act  as  though 
there  was  nowhere  to  go  and  nothing  to  do  but 
attend  those  meetings.  For  my  part  it  is  a  real 
relief  to  have  a  change  in  the  programme." 

"  Do  you  find  it  so  ?  "  he  asked.  "  Well,  now, 
[  don't  agree  with  you.  I  think  this  proceeding 
iis  a  real  bore.  My  respected  aunt  is  always 
getting  up  absurd  freaks,  and  this  is  one  of 
them,  and  the  worst  one,  in  my  opinion,  that 


Fleeing.  135 

she  has  had  for  some  time.  I  wanted  to  go  to 
those  meetings  to-day  —  some  of  them,  at  least. 
One  isn't  obliged  to  be  there  every  minute. 
But  it  looks  badly  to  run  away." 

Eurie  eyed  him  closely. 

"Are  you  the  'good  nephew'  that  your  aunt 
said  thought  these  meetings  only  a  step  below 
paradise  ?  "  she  asked,  at  last.  "  I  wonder  you 
would  consent  to  come." 

Mr.  Rawsou  flushed  deeply. 

"  I  am  not  the  '  good  nephew '  at  all,"  he  said, 
trying  to  laugh.  "The  'good  one'  wouldn't 
come.  My  aunt  tried  all  her  powers  of  persua 
sion  on  him  in  vain.  But  the  truth  is  her  elo 
quence,  or  her  persistence,  proved  too  much  for 
me,  though  I  don't  like  the  looks  of  it,  and  I 
don't  feel  the  pleasure  of  it,  and  I  am  afraid  I 
shall  make  anything  but  an  agreeable  addition 
to  the  party.  Now  that  is  being  frank,  isn't  it, 
when  I  am  walking  the  deck  with  a  }*oung 
lady?" 

"I  don't  see  why  that  circumstance  should 
make  it  a  surprising  thing  that  you  are  frank. 
But  I  am  very  sorry  for  you ;  perhaps  you 
might  prevail  on  the  Captain  to  put  you  off 


136  Four  G-irls  at  Chautauqua. 

now,  and  let  you  swim  back;  you  could  get 
there  in  time  for  the  sermon.  Is  there  to  be  a 
sermon?  What  is  it  you  are  so  anxious  to 
hear?" 

"  All  of  it,"  he  said  gloomily.  "  I  beg  your 
pardon  for  being  in  so  disagreeable  a  mood ;  it  is 
defrauding  you  out  of  some  of  your  expected 
pleasure  to  have  a  dismal  companion.  But  as  I 
have  commenced  by  being  frank  I  may  as  well 
continue.  I  am  dissatisfied  with  myself.  I 
ought  not  to  have  come  on  this  excursion.  The 
truth  is,  I  meant  to  make  Chautanqua  a  help  to 
me.  I  need  the  help  badly  enough.  1  am  in 
the  rush  and  whirl  of  business  all  the  time  at 
home.  This  is  the  only  two  weeks  in  the  year 
that  I  am  free,  and  I  wanted  to  make  it  a  great 
spiritual  help  to  me.  I  know  very  well  that 
merely  hovering  around  in  such  an  atmosphere 
as  that  at  Chautauqua  is  a  help  to  the  Christian, 
and  I  came  with  the  full  intention  of  taking  in 
all  that  I  could  get  of  this  sort  of  inspiration, 
and  it  chafes  me  that  so  early  in  the  meeting  I 
have  been  led  away  against  my  inclinations  by  u 
little  pressure  that  I  might  have  resisted,  and 
done  no  harm  to  any  one.  My  cousin  had  the 


Fleeing.  137 

same  sort  of  influence  brought  to  bear  on  him, 
and  it  had  no  more  effect  on  him  than  it  would 
on  a  stone." 

lie  stopped,  and  seemed  to  give  Eurie  a 
chance  to  answer,  but  she  was  not  inclined,  and 
he  added,  as  if  he  had  just  thought  his  words  an 
implied  reproach  :  "  I  can  understand  how,  to 
you  young  ladies  of  comparative  leisure,  with 
plenty  of  time  to  cultivate  the  spiritual  side  of 
your  natures,  it  should  seem  an  unnecessary  and 
perhaps  a  wearisome  thing  to  attend  all  these 
meetings;  but  you  can  not  understand  \vhatit 
is  to  be  in  the  whirl  of  business  life,  never  hav 
ing  time  to  think,  hardly  having  time  to  pray, 
and  to  get  away  from  it  all  and  go  to  heaven,  as 
it  were,  for  a  fortnight,  is  something  to  be  cov 
eted  by  us  as  a  great  help." 

Once  more  he  waited  for  Eurie's  answer,  but 
it  was  very  different  from  what  he  had  seemed 
to  expect. 

"  You  might  just  as  well  talk  to  me  in  the 
Greek  language ;  I  should  understand  quite  as 
well  what  you  have  been  saying ;  I  don't  think  1 
have  any  spiritual  side  to  my  nature ;  at  least  it 
has  never  been  cultivated  if  I  have ;  and  Chau- 


138  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

tauqua  to  me  is  just  the  place  in  which  to  have 
'a  good  free  easy  time  ;  go  where  I  like  and  stay 
as  long  as  I  like ;  and  for  once  in  my  life  not  be 
bound  by  conventional  forms.  If  heaven  is  any 
thing  like  that  I  shouldn't  object  to  it ;  but  I'm 
sure  your  and  my  idea  of  it  would  differ.  There, 
I've  been  frank  now,  and  shocked  you,  I  know. 
I  see  ib  in  every  line  of  your  face.  Poor  fellow  ! 
I  don't  know  what  you  will  do,  for  there  isn't  a 
single  one  of  us  who  has  the  least  idea  what  you 
mean  by  that  sort  of  talk,  unless  you  have  some 
young  ladies  of  a  different  type  in  your  party, 
and  from  their  manner  I  rather  doubt  it." 

She  had  shocked  him.  He  looked  not  only 
pained  but  puzzled. 

" 1  am  very  sorry,"  he  stammered.  "  I  mean 
surprised.  Yes,  and  disappointed.  Of  course  I 
am  that.  I  think  I  had  imagined  that  it  was 
only  Christians  who  could  be  attracted  to  Chau 
tauqua  at  all ;  I  mean  to  come  to  stay  through 
all  the  services." 

"  Your  aunt,  for  instance  ? "  Eurie  said,  in 
quiringly. 

"  My  aunt  is  a  Christian,"  he  answered,  "  and 
a  sincere  one,  too,  though  I  see  for  some  reason 


Fleeing.  139 

you  don't  think  so.  There  are  degrees  in  Chris 
tianity,  Miss  Mitchell,  just  as  there  are  in  amia 
bility,  or  culture,  or  beauty." 

"  Mr.  Rawsou !  "  called  a  voice  from  the  other 
end  at  this  moment,  and  he  in  obedience  to  the 
call  found  Eurie  a  seat  near  some  of  her  party 
and  went  away,  only  stopping  to  say,  in  low- 
tones : 

"  I  ain  sorry  it  is  all  '  Greek '  to  you ;  you 
would  enjoy  understanding  it,  I  am  sure." 

It  so  happened  that  those  two  people  did  not 
exchange  another  word  together  that  day,  but 
Eurie  had  got  her  thrust  when  and  where  she 
least  expected  it.  She  had  taken  it  for  granted 
that  not  a  single  fanatic  was  of  their  party.  In 
the  secret  of  her  wise  heart  she  denominated  all 
the  earnest  people  at  Chautauqua  fanatics,  and 
all  the  half-hearted  people  hypocrites.  Only 
she,  who  stood  outside  and  felt  nothing,  was 
sincere  and  wise. 

Meantime  Marion  had  undertaken  a  strange 
task.  Mr.  Charlie  Flint  was  the  gentleman 
who  had  drawn  his  chair  near  her,  and  said,  as 
he  drew  a  long  breath : 

"It   is   exceedingly   pleasant   to   breathe   air 


140  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

once  more  that  isn't  heavy  with  psalm  singing 
I  think  they  are  running  that  thing  a  little  ton 
steep  over  there.  Who  imagined  that  they 
were  going  to  have  meeting  every  minute  in 
the  day  and  evening,  and  give  nobody  a  chance 
to  breathe  ?  " 

"  Have  they  exhausted  you  already  ?  "  Marion 
asked..  "Let  me  see,  this  is  the  morning  of  the 
second  day,  is  it  not  ?  " 

"  Oh,  as  to  myself,  I  was  exhausted  before  I 
commenced  it.  I  am  only  speaking  a  word  for 
the  lunatics  who  think  they  enjoy  it.  I  am  one 
of  the  victims  to  our  cousin's  whim.  He  ex 
pects  to  get  me  converted  here,  I  think,  or  some 
thing  of  that  sort." 

"  I  wouldn't  be  afraid  of  it,"  Marion  said,  in 
disgust.  "  I  don't  believe  there  is  the  least  dan- 
ger." 

Mr.  Charlie  chose  to  consider  this  as  a  compli 
ment,  and  bowed  and  smiled,  and  said : 

"  Thanks.     Now  tell  me  why,  please." 

"  You  don't  look  like  that  class  of  people  who 
are  affected  in  that  way." 

He  was  wonderfully  interested,  and  begged  at 


Fleeing.  141 

once  to  know  why.  Marion  had  it  in  her  heart 
to  say,  "Because  they  all  look  as  though  they 
had  some  degree  of  brain  as  well  as  bod}',"  but 
even  she  had  a  little  regard  left  for  feelings  ;  so 
she  contented  herself  with  saying,  savagely : 

"  Oh,  they,  as  a  rule,  are  the  sort  of  people 
who  think  there  is  something  in  life  worth  doing 
and  planning  for,  and  you  look  as  though  that 
would  be  too  much  trouble." 

Now,  Mr.  Charlie  by  no  means  liked  to  be 
considered  devoid  of  energy,  so  he  said : 

"  Ob,  you  mistake.  I  think  there  are  several 
things  worth  doing.  But  this  eternal  going  to 
meeting,  and  whining  over  one's  soul,  is  not  to 
my  taste." 

"  You  think  that  it  is  more  worth  your  while 
to  take  ladies  out  to  ride  and  walk,  and  carry 
their  parasols  and  muffs  for  them,  and  things  of 
that  sort.  Since  we  are  made  for  the  purpose 
of  staying  here  and  showing  our  fine  clothes  for 
all  eternity,  of  course  it  is  foolish  to  have  any 
thing  to  do  with  one's  soul,  that  can  only  last 
for  a  few  years  or  so  !  " 

She  hardly  realized  herself  the  intense  scorn 


142  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

there  was  in  her  voice,  and  as  for  Charlie  Flint, 
he  muttered  to  himself: 

"  Upon  my  word,  she  is  one  of  them ;  of  the 
bitterest  sort,  too  !  What  in  creation  is  she  do 
ing  here?  Why  didn't  she  stay  there  and 
preach  ?  " 


CHAPTER  X. 

HOW    THE   "  FLITTESG  "   ENDED. 

for  Ruth,  Erskine  if  she  had  been  asked 
whether  she  was  enjoying  the  day,  she 
would  hardly  have  known  what  answer 
to  make ;  she  could  not  even  tell  why  the  excur 
sion  was  not  in  every  respect  all  that  it  had 
promised  in  the  morning.  She  had  no  realization 
of  how  much  the  atmosphere  of  the  day  before 
lingered  around  her,  and  made  her  notice  the 
contrast  between  the  people  of  yesterday  and  the 
people  of  to-day.  Mrs.  Sniithe,  if  she  were  a 
Christian,  as  her  nephew  insisted,  was  one  of  the 
most  unfortunate  specimens  of  that  class  for 
Ruth  Erskine  to  meet ;  because  she  was  a  woman 
who  entered  into  pleasure  and  fashion,  and 

entertainments  of  all  sorts,  with  zest  and  energy, 

(143) 


144  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

and  only  in  matters  of  religious  interest  seemed 
to  lose  all  life  and  zeal. 

Now  Ruth  Erskine,  calm  as  a  summer  morn 
ing  herself  over  all  matters  pertaining  to  the 
souls  of  people  in  general,  and  her  own  in  par 
ticular,  was  yet  exceedingly  fond  of  seeing  other 
people  act  in  a  manner  that  she  chose  to  consider 
consistent  with  their  belief ;  therefore  she  de 
spised  Mrs.  Smithe  for  what  she  was  pleased  to 
term  her  "  hypocrisy."  At  the  same  time,  while 
at  Saratoga,  she  had  quite  enjoyed  her  society. 
They  rode  together  on  fine  mornings,,  sipped 
their  "  Congress  "  together  before  lunch,  and  at 
tended  hops  together  in  the  evenings.  Now  the 
reason  why  Mrs.  Smithe's  society  had  so  sud 
denly  palled  upon  her,  and  the  words  that  she 
was  pleased  to  call  "  conversation"  become  such 
vapid  things,  Rath  did  not  know,  and  did  not  for 
one  instant  attribute  to  Chautauqua ;  and  yet 
that  meeting  had  already  stamped  its  impression 
upon  her.  From  serene,  indifferent  heights  she 
liked  to  look  down  upon  and  admire  earnest 
ness  ;  therefore  Chautauqua,  despite  all  her  dis 
gust  over  the  common  surroundings  and  awk 
ward  accommodations,  had  pleased  her  fancy  and 


How  the  "Flitting"  Ended.  145 

arrested  her  attention  more  than  she  herself 
realized.  It  was  her  fate  to  be  thrown  almost 
constantly  with  Mrs.  Smithe  during  the  day,  and 
before  the  afternoon  closed  she  was  surfeited. 
She  heartily  wished  herself  back  to  the  grounds, 
and  found  herself  wondering  what  they  were 
singing,  and  whether  the  service  of  song  was 
really  very  interesting. 

One  episode  in  her  day  had  interested  her,  and 
she  could  not  tell  whether  it  had  most  amused  or 
annoyed  her.  One  of  their  party  was  convers 
ing  with  a  gentleman  as  she  came  up.  Sue  had 
just  time  to  observe  that  he  was  young  and  fine- 
looking,  when  the  two  turned  to  her,  and  she 
was  introduced  to  the  stranger. 

"  You  are  from  Chautauqua?  "  he  said,  speak 
ing  rapidly  and  earnestly.  "  Grand  meeting, 
isn't  it?  Going  to  be  better  than  hist  }'ear,  I 
think.  Were  you  there  ?  No  ?  Then  you  don't 
know  what  a  treat  you  are  to  have.  I'm 
very  sory  to  lose  to-day.  It  has  been  a  good 
day,  I  know.  The  programme  was  rich  ;  but  a 
matter  of  business  made  it  necessary  to  be  away. 
It  is  unfortunate  for  me  that  I  am  so  near  home. 
If  I  were  two  or  three  hundred  miles  away, 


146  Four   Girls  at   Chautauqua. 

where  the  business  couldn't  reach  me,  I  should 
get  more  "benefit.  Miss  Erskine,  what  is  your 
opinion  of  the  direct  spiritual  results  of  this  gath 
ering  ?  I  do  not  mean  upon  Christians.  No  one, 
of  course,  can  doubt  its  happy  influence  upon 
our  hearts  and  lives.  But  I  mean,  are  you  hope 
ful  as  to  the  reaching  of  many  of  the  uncon 
verted,  or  do  you  consider  its  work  chiefly 
among  us  ?  " 

Such  a  volley  of  words?  They  fairly  poured 
forth!  And  the  speaker  was  so  intensely  in 
earnest,  and  so  assured  in  his  use  of  that  word 
"  we,"  as  if  it  were  a  matter  that  was  entirely 
bej^ond  question  that  she  was  one  of  the  magic 
"  we."  She  did  not  know  how  to  set  out  to  work 
to  enlighten  him.  In  fact,  she  gave  little  thought 
to  that  part  of  the  matter,  but,  instead,  fell  to 
wondering  what  was  her  idea  —  whether  she  did 

O 

expect  to  see  results  of  any  sort  from  the 
great  gathering,  and  that  being  the  case,  what 
she  expected  ?  "  Spiritual  results,"  she  said  to 
herself,  and  a  smile  hovered  over  her  face  — 
what  were  "  spiritual  results  ?  "  She  knew  nothing 
about  them.  Were  there  any  such  things?  Eu- 
rie  Mitchell,  had  such  a  question  occurred  to  her 


How  the  "Flitting"  Ended.  147 

would  have  asked  it  aloud  at  once  and  enjoyed 
the  sense  of  shocking  her  auditor.  But  Huth 
did  not  like  to  shock  people ;  she  was  too  much 
of  a  lady  for  that. 

"  What  proportion  of  that  class  of  people  are 
here,  do  you  think  ?  "  she  said,  at  last.  "  Are 
not  the  most  of  them  professing  Christians.?  " 

44  Precisely  the  question  that  interests  me.  I 
should  really  like  to  know.  I  wonder  if  there  is 
no  way  of  coining  at  it  ?  We  might  call  for  a 
rising  vote  of  all  who  loved  the  Lord  ;  could  we 
not  ?  Wouldn't  it  be  a  beautiful  sight  ? —  a  great 
army  standing  up  for  him !  I  incline  to  youi 
opinion  that  the  most  of  them  are  Christians,  or 
at  least  a  large  proportion.  But  I  should  very 
much  like  to  know  just  how  far  this  idea  had 
touched  the  popular  heart,  so  as  to  call  out  those 
who  are  not  on  the  Lord's  side." 

"  They  would  simply  have  come  for  the  fun  of 
the  thing,  or  the  novelty  of  it,"  she  said,  feeling 
amused  again  that  almost  of  necessity  she  was 
speaking  of  herself  and  using  the  pronoun  "  they." 
What  would  this  gentleman  think  if  he  should 
bring  about  that  vote  of  which  he  spoke  and 
happen  to  see  her  among  the  seated  ones? 


148  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

"  '  A  wolf  in  sheep's  clothing  '  he  would  sup 
pose  me  to  be,"  she  said  to  herself.  "  But  I  am 
sure  I  have  not  told  him  that  I  belong  to  the 
4  we  '  at  all.  If  he  chooses  to  assume  things  in 
that  way,  it  is  not  my  fault." 

Apparently  he  answered  both  her  expressed 
sentence  and  her  thought : 

"  I  do  not  think  so,"  he  said,  earnestly.  "  I 
doubt  if  any  have  come  simply  for  fun  or  for 
novelty.  There  are  better  places  in  which  to 
gratify  both  tastes.  I  believe  there  is  more  actual 
interest  in  this  subject,  even  among  the  uncon 
verted,  than  many  seem  to  think.  They  are  rea 
sonable  beings.  They  must  think,  and  many  of 
them,  no  doubt,  think  to  good  purpose.  It  may 
not  be  clear  even  to  themselves  for  what  they 
have  come;  But  I  believe  in  some  instances,  to 
say  the  least,  it  will  prove  to  have  been  the  call 
of  the  Spirit." 

Again  Ruth  felt  herself  forced  to  smile,  not  at 
the  earnestness  —  she  liked  that,  but  there  was 
her  party,  and  she  rapidly  reviewed  them  — 
Marion,  with  her  calm,  composed,  skeptical 
views,  indifferent  alike  to  the  Christian  or  un 
christian  way  of  doing  things  ;  Eurie,  who  lived 


Sow  the  "Flitting"  Ended.  149 

and  breathed  for  the  purpose  of  having  what  in 
wild  moments  she  called  "  a  high  time  ;  "  Flossy 
with  her  dainty  wardrobe,  and  her  dainty  wa}*s, 
and  her  indifference  to  everything  that  demanded 
thought  or  care.  Which  of  them  had  been 
"  called  by  the  Spirit "  ?  There  was  herself,  and 
for  the  time  she  gave  a  little  start.  What  had 
she  come  to  Chautauqua  for?  After  all  she  was 
the  only  one  who  seemed  to  be  absolutely  with 
out  a  reason  for  being  there.  Marion's  avowed 
intention  had  been  to  make  some  money  ;  Eurie's 
to  have  a  free  and  easy  time  ;  Flossy  had  come 
as  she  did  everything  else,  because  "  they  "  did. 
But  now,  what  about  Ruth  Erskine  ?  She  was 
not  wont  to  do  as  others  did,  unless  it  happened 
to  please  her.  What  had  been  her  motive  ?  It 
was  strange  to  feel  that  she  really  did  not  know. 
What  if  this  strange  speaking  young  man  were 
right,  and  she  had  been  singled  out  by  the  Spirit 
of  God!  The  thought  gave  her  a  thrill,  not  of 
pleasure,  but  of  absolute,  nervous  fear.  What 
did  she  know  of  that  gracious  Spirit?  What 
did  she  know  of  Christ  ?  To  her  there  was  no 
beauty  in  him.  She  desired  simply  to  be  left 
alone.  She  was  silent  so  long  that  her  compan- 


150  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

ion  gave  her  a  very  searching  review  from  under 
his  heavy  eyebrows,  and  then  his  face  suddenly 
lighted  as  if  he  had  solved  a  problem. 

"  May  I  venture  to  prophesy  that  you  have 
some  friend  here  whom  you  would  give  much 
to  feel  had  been  drawn  here  by  the  very  Spirit; 
of  God  ? "  He  spoke  the  words  eagerly  and 
with  earnestness,  but  with  utmost  respect,  and 
added,  "  If  I  am  right  I  will  add  the  name  to  my 
list  for  special  prayer.  Do  not  think  me  rude, 
please.  I  know  how  pleasant  it  is  to  feel  there 
is  a  union  of  desire  in  prayer.  I  have  enjoyed 
that  help  often.  We  do  not  always  need  to 
know  who  those  are  for  whom  we  pray.  God 
knows  them,  and  that  is  the  needful  thing. 
Good-evening.  I  am  glad  to  have  met  you.  It 
is  pleasant  to  have  additions  to  our  list  of  fellow- 
heirs." 

How  bright  his  smile  was  as  he  said  those 
words  !  And  how  thoroughly  manly  and  yet 
how  strikingly  childlike  had  been  his  words  and 
his  trust !  Ruth  watched  him  as  he  walked  rap 
idly  away  to  overtake  a  friend  who  had  just 
passed  them.  Do  you  remember  a  certain  gen 
tleman,  Harold  Wayne  by  name,  who  had  walked 


How  the  "Flitting"  Ended.  151 

with  them,  walked  especially  with  Ruth,  down 
to  the  depot  on  the  morning  of  departure,  who 
had  toyed  with  her  fan  and  complained  that  he 
could  not  imagine  what  they  were  going  to  bury 
themselves  out  there  for?  Ruth  thought  of  him 
now,  and  the  contrast  between  his  lazily  exquis 
ite  air  and  drawling  words  and  the  fresh,  earnest 
life  that  glowed  in  this  young  man's  veins 
brought  a  positive  quiver  of  disgust  over  her 
handsome  face.  There  was  no  shadow  of  a 
smile  upon  it  now.  Instead,  she  felt  a  nameless 
dread.  How  strange  the  talk  had  been  !  To 
what  had  she  committed  herself  by  her  silence 
and  his  blunders  ?  /She  pray  for  any  one  !  What 
a  queer  thing  that  would  be  to  do.  She  anxious 
that  any  one  should  be  led  by  the  spirit  of  God ! 
The  spirit  of  God  frightened  her.  For  whom 
would  this  young  man  pray  ?  Not  certainly  for 
any  friend  of  hers ;  yet  he  would  put  the  name 
of  some  stranger  in  his  prayers.  He  was  thor 
oughly  in  earnest,  and  he  was  the  sort  of  a  man 
to  do  just  what  he  said.  God,  he  had  said, 
would  understand  whom  he  meant.  For  whom 
would  God  count  those  pikers?  For  her? 
And  that  thought  also  frightened  her. 


152  Four   Grirls  at   Chautauqua. 

"  They  are  all  lunatics,  I  verily  believe,  from 
the  leaders  to  the  followers,"  she  said  in  irrita 
tion,  and  then  she  wished  herself  at  home.  Dur 
ing  the  remainder  of  the  day  she  was  engaged  in 
trying  to  shake  off  the  impression  that  the 
stranger  had  left  upon  her.  Go  where  she 
would,  say  what  she  might,  and  she  really  ex 
erted  herself  to  be  brilliant  and  entertaining, 
there  followed  her  around  the  memory  of  those 
great,  earnest  eyes  when  he  said,  "  I  will  add  the 
name  to  my  list  for  special  prayer."  What 
name  ?  lie  knew  hers.  He  would  say,  doubt 
less,  "  Her  friend  for  whom  she  was  anxious." 
But  the  one  to  whom  he  pra}7ed  would  know 
there  was  no  such  person.  What  would  He  do 
with  that  earnest  praj^er?  For  she  knew  it 
would  be  earnest.  She  was  not  used  to  theolog 
ical  mazes,  and  if  ever  a  girl  was  heartily  glad 
when  a  day  of  pleasuring  was  over,  and  the  boat 
had  touched  again  at  the  Chautauqua  wharf,  it 
was  Ruth  Erskine. 

As  for  Flossy,  it  so  happened  that  Charlie 
Flint,  after  Marion  had  startled  and  disgusted 
him,  sought  refuge  with  her.  She  was  pretty 
and  dainty,  and  did  not  look  strong-minded ; 


Sow  the  "Flitting"  Ended.  153 

not  in  the  least  as  if  her  forte  was  to  preach,  so 
he  made  ready  to  have  a  running  fire  of  small 
talk  with  her. 

Tliis  had  been  Flossy 's  power  in  conversation 
for  several  years.  He  had  judged  her  rightly 
there.  But  do  }~ou  remember  with  whom  her 
morning  had  commenced?  Do  you  know  that 
all  the  day  thus  far  she  had  seemed  to  herself  to 
be  shadowed  by  a  glorious  presence,  who  walked 
steadily  beside  her,  before  her,  on  either  hand, 
to"  shield,  and  help  and  bless  ? 

It  was  very  sweet  to  Flossy,  and  she  was  very 
happy ;  happier  than  she  had  ever  been  in  her 
life.  She  smiled  to  herself  as  the  others  chatted, 
she  hummed  in  undertone  the  refrain  of  a  hymn 
that  she  had  caught  in  a  near  tent  that  morn 
ing : 

"  I  am  so  glad  that  Jesus  loves  me." 

Wasn't  she  glad  !  "Was  there  any  thing  better  to 
find  in  all  this  world  than  the  assurance  of  this 
truth?  She  felt  that  the  thought  was  large 
enough  to  fill  heaven  itself.  After  that,  what 
hope  was  there  for  Charlie  Flint  and  his  small 
talk  ?  Still,  he  tried  it,  and  if  ever  he  did  hard 
work  it  was  during  that  talk.  Flossy  was  sweet 


154  Four  Grirls  at  CJiautauqua. 

and  clieeiy,  but  preoccupied.  There  was  a  tan- 
talizingly  pleasant  smile  on  her  face,  as  if  her 
thoughts  might  be  full  of  beauty,  but  none  of 
them  seemed  to  appear  in  her  words.  She  did 
not  flush  over  his  compliments,  nor  was  she  dis 
turbed  at  his  bantering. 

He  got  out  of  all  patience. 

"  I  beg  pardon,"  he  said,  in  his  flippantly  gal 
lant  wa}r,  "but  I'm  inclined  to  think  you  are 
very  selfish;  you  are  having  your  enjoyment  all 
to  yourself.  To  judge  by  the  face  which  you 
have  worn  all  day  your  heart  is  bubbling  over 
with  it,  and  yet  you  think  about  it  instead  of 
giving  me  a  bit." 

Flossy  looked  up  with  a  shy,  sweet  smile  that 
was  very  pleasant  to  see,  and  the  first  blush  he 
had  been  able  to  call  forth  that  day  glowed  on 
her  cheeks.  Was  it  true  ?  she  questioned  within 
herself.  Was  she  being  selfish  in  this,  her  new 
joy  ?  Ought  she  to  try  to  tell  him  about  it  ? 
Would  he  understand  ?  and  could  she  speak 
about  such  things,  anyway?  She  didn't  know 
how.  She  shrank  from  it,  and  yet  perhaps  it 
would  be  so  pleasant  to  him  to  know.  No,  oa 
the  whole,  she  did  not  think  it  would  be  pleas- 


How  the  "Flitting"  Ended.  155 

ant.  They  had  not  talked  of  the  meetings  nor 
of  religious  matters  at  all ;  but  for  all  that  the 
subtle  magnetism  that  there  is  about  some  peo 
ple  had  told  her  that  Charlie  Flint  would  not 
sympathize  in  her  new  hopes  and  joys. 

"Well,  if  that  were  so,  ought  she  not  all  the 
more  to  tell  him,  so  that  he  might  know  that  to 
one  more  person  Christ  had  proved  himself  a 
reality,  and  not  the  spiritual  fancy  that  he  used 
to  seem  to  her?  Flossy,  you  see,  was  taking 
long  strides  that  first  day  of  her  Christian  expe 
rience,  and  was  reaching  farther  than  some  Chris 
tians  reach  who  have  been  practicing  for  years. 
Something  told  her  that  here  was  a  chance  of 
witnessing  for  the  one  who  had  just  saved  her. 
She  thought  these  thoughts  much  more  quickly 
than  it  has  taken  me  to  write  them,  and  then 
she  spoke : 

"  Have  I  been  selfish  ?  I  do  not  know  but  I 
have.  It  is  all  so  utterly  new  that  I  hardly 
know  how  I  am  acting;  but  it  is  true  that  rny 
heart  has  been  as  light  as  a  bird's  all  day.  The 
truth  is,  I  have  found  a  friend  here  at  Chautau- 
qua  who  has  just  satisfied  me." 


156  Four  G-irls  at  CJiautauqua. 

"Have  you  indeed! "  said  Mr.  Charlie,  giving, 
in  spite  of  his  well-bred  effort  to  quell  it,  tin 
amused  little  laugh.  And  in  his  heart  he  said, 
"  What  a  ridiculous  little  mouse  she  is  !  I  won 
der  if  they  have  the  wedding  day  set  already, 
and  if  she  will  announce  it  to  me?"  Then 
aloud  :  "  How  very  fortunate  you  have  been  !  I 
wish  I  could  find  a  friend  so  easily  as  that !  I 
wonder  if  I  am  acquainted  with  him  ?  Would 
you  mind  telling  me  his  name  ?  " 

And  then  Flossy  answered  just  one  word  in  a 
low  voice  that  was  tremulous  with  feeling,  and 
at  the  same  time  wonderfully  clear,  and  with  a 
touch  of  joy  in  it  that  would  not  be  suppressed, 
"  Jesus." 

Then  it  was  that  the  exquisite  young  fop  at 
her  side  was  utterly  dumbfounded.  He  could 
not  remember  ever  before  in  his  life  being  so  com 
pletely  taken  by  surprise  and  dismay  that  he  had 
not  a  word  to  answer.  But  this  time  he  said 
not  a  single  word.  He  did  not  even  attempt  an 
answer,  but  paced  the  length  of  the  deck  beside 
her  in  utter  and  confused  silence,  then  abruptly 
seated  her,  still  in  silence,  and  went  hurriedly 


How  the  "Flitting"  Ended.  157 

away.  Flossy,  occupied  with  the  rush  of  feeling 
that  this  first  witnessing  for  the  new  name 
called  forth,  gave  little  heed  to  his  manner,  and 
was  indifferent  to  his  departure.  He  was  right 
as  to  one  thing.  Her  love  was  still  selfish :  it 
was  so  new  and  sweet  to  her  that  it  occupied  all 
her  heart,  and  left  no  room  as  yet  for  the  out 
side  world  who  knew  not  this  friend  of  hers. 
They  were  almost  at  the  dock  now,  and  the 
glimmer  of  the  Chautauqua  lights  was  growing 
into  a  steady  brightness.  As  she  stood  leaning 
over  the  boat's  side  and  watching  the  play  of 
the  silver  waves,  there  brushed  past  her  one 
who  seemed  to  be  very  quietly  busy.  One 
hand  was  full  of  little  leaflets,  and  he  was  drop 
ping  one  on  each  chair  and  stool  as  he  passed. 
She  glanced  at  the  one  nearest  her  and  read  the 
title  :  "  The  True  Friend,"  and  it  brought  an  in 
stant  flush  of  brightness  to  her  face  to  under 
stand  those  words  and  feel  that  the  Friend  was 
hers.  Then  she  glanced  at  the  worker  and  rec 
ognized  his  face,  lie  had  prayed  for  her.  She 
could  not  forget  that  face.  It  was  plain  also 
that  his  e}*es  fell  on  her.  lie  knew  her,  and 
something  in  her  face  prompted  the  low-toned 


158  Four  Grirls  at  Chautauqua. 

sentence  as  be  paused  before  ber :  "Youbave 
found  tbe  Father,  I  think." 

And  Flossy,  with  brightening  eyes,  answered, 
quickly,  "  Yes,  I  have." 

And  then  tbe  boat  touched  at  tbe  wharf,  and 
the  crowd  elbowed  their  way  out. 

There  were  two  opinions  expressed  about  that 
excursion  by  two  gentlemen  as  they  made  their 
way  up  the  avenue.  One  of  the  gentleman  was 
clerical,  and  spectacled,  and  solemn. 

"  There  go  a  boat-load  of  excursionists,"  he 
said  to  his  companion. 

"  They  come,  as  likely  as  not  delegates,  from 
some  church  or  Sabbath-school,  and  the  way 
they  do  their  work  is  to  go  off  for  a  frolic  and 
be  gone  all  day.  I  saw  them  when  I  left  this 
morning.  That  is  a  specimen  of  a  good  deal  of 
the  dissipation  that  is  going  on  here  under  the 
guise  of  religion.  I  don't  know  about  it ;  some 
times  I  am  afraid  more  harm  than  good  will  be 
done." 

The  other  speaker  was  Mr.  Charlie  Flint,  and 
as  he  rushed  past  these  two  he  said  to  his  com 
panion,  "  Confound  it  all !  Talk  about  getting 
away  from  these  meetings !  It's  no  use ;  it  can't 


How  the  "Flitting"  Ended. 


159 


be  done.  A  fellow  might  just  as  well  stay  here 
and  run  every  time  the  bell  rings.  I  heard  more 
preaching  to-day  on  this  excursion  than  I  did 
yesterday;  and  a  good  deal  more  astonishing 
preaching,  too." 


CHAPTER  XI. 

HEART  TOUCHES. 

gave  her  hair  an  energetic  twist 
as  she  made  her  toilet  the  next  morning, 
and  announced  her  determination. 

"  This  day  is  to  be  devoted  conscientiously  to 
the  legitimate  business  that  brought  me  to  this 
region.  Yesterday's  report  will  have  to  be  cop 
ied  from  the  Buffalo  papers,  or  made  out  of  my 
own  brain.  But  I'm  going  to  work  to-day.  I 
have  a  special  interest  in  the  programme  for  this 
The  subject  for  the  lecture  just  suits 

(160) 


Heart  Touches.  161 

"  What  is  it  ? "  Eurie  asked,  yawning,  and 
wishing  there  was  another  picnic  in  progress. 
Neither  heart  nor  brain  were  particularly  inter 
ested  in  Chautauqua. 

"  Why,  it  is « The  Press  and  the  Sunday-school/ 
Of  course  the  press  attracts  me,  as  I  intend  to 
belong  to  the  staff  when  I  get  through  teaching 
young  ideas." 

"  But  what  about  the  Sunday-school  ?  "  Ruth 
questioned,  with  a  calm  voice.  "  You  can  not 
be  expected  to  have  any  special  interest  in  that. 
You  never  go  to  such  an  institution,  do  you  ?  " 

"  I  was  born  and  brought  up  in  one.  But  that 
isn't  the  point.  The  subject  to-day  is  Sunday- 
school  literature,  I  take  it.  The  subject  is 
strung  together,  4  The  Press  and  the  Sunday- 
school,'  without  any  periods  between  them,  and 
I'm  exceedingly  interested  in  that,  for  just  as 
soon  as  I  get  time  I'm  going  to  write  a  Sunday- 
school  book." 

This  announcement  called  forth  bursts  of 
laughter  from  all  the  girls. 

"  Why  not  ?  "  Marion  said,  answering  the 
laugh.  "  I  hope  you  don't  intimate  that  I  can't 
do  it.  I  don't  know  anything  easier  to  do.  You 


162  Four   Girls  at   Chautauqua. 

just  have  to  gather  together  the  most  improbable 
set  of  girls  and  boys,  and  rack  your  brains  for 
things  that  they  never  did  do,  or  could  do,  or 
ought  to  do,  and  paste  them  all  together  with  a 
little  'good  talk,'  and  }~ou  have  your  book,  as 
orthodox  as  possible.  Do  any  of  you  know  any 
thing  about  Dr.  Walden  ?  He  is  the  speaker. 
I  presume  he  is  as  dry  as  a  stick,  and  won't  give 
me  a  single  idea  that  I  can  weave  into  my  book. 
I'm  going  to  begin  it  right  away.  Girls,  I'm  go 
ing  to  put  you  all  in,  only  I  can't  decide  which 
shall  be  the  good  one.  Flossy,  do  you  suppose 
there  is  enough  imagination  in  me  to  make  you 
into  a  book  saint?  They  always  have  a  saint, 
you  know." 

There  was  a  pretty  flush  on  Flossy's  cheek, 
but  she  answered,  brightly  : 

"  You  might  try,  Marion,  and  I'll  engage  to 
practice  on  the  character,  if  it  is  really  and 
truly  a  good  one." 

*'  I  had  a  glimpse  of  Dr.  Walden,"  Eurie  said, 
answering  the  question.  "  He  was  pointed  out 
to  me  yesterday.  He  looked  dignified  enough 
to  write  a  theological  revie\v.  Pm  not  going  to 
hear  him.  What's  the  use  ?  I  came  for  fun, 


Heart  Touches.  163 

and  I'm  going  in  search  of  it  all  this  day.  I  have 
studied  the  programme,  and  there  is  just  one 
thing  that  I'm  going  to  attend,  and  that  is  Frank 
Beard's  '  chalk  talk.'  I  know  that  will  be  capi 
tal,  and  he  won't  bore  one  with  a  sermon  poked 
in  every  two  minutes." 

So  the  party  divided  for  the  day.  Marion  and 
Ruth  went  to  the  stand,  and  Flossy  stra}red  to  a 
side  tent,  and  what  happened  to  her  you  shall 
presently  hear.  Eurie  wandered  at  her  fancy, 
and  enjoyed  a  "stupid  time,"  so  she  reported. 

Marion's  pencil  moved  rapidly  over  the  paper 
almost  as  soon  as  Dr.  Walden  commenced,  until 
presently  she  whispered  in  dismay  to  Ruth : 

"  I  do  wish  he  would  say  something  to  leave 
out !  This  letter  will  be  fearfully  long.  How 
sharp  he  is,  isn't  he  ?  " 

Then  she  scribbled  again.  Ruth  had  the  ben 
efit  of  many  side  remarks. 

"  My  !  "  Marion  said,  with  an  accompanying 
grimace.  "What  an  army  of  books!  All  for 
Sunday-schools.  Three  millions  given  out  every 
Sunday  !  Does  that  seem  possible  !  Brother 
Hart,  I'm  afraid  you  are  mistaken.  Didn't  he 
say  that  was  Dr.  Hart's  estimate,  Ruthie  ?  There 


164  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

is  certainly  a  good  chance  for  mine,  if  so  many 
are  needed  every  week.  I  shall  have  to  go  right 
to  work  at  it.  What  if  I  should  write  one,  Ruth, 
and  what  if  it  should  take,  and  all  the  millions  of 
Sunday-schools  want  it  at  once  !  Just  as  likely 
as  not.  I  am  a  genius.  They  never  know  it 
until  afterward.  I  shall  certainly  put  you  in, 
Ruthie,  in  some  form.  So  you  are  destined  to 
immortality,  remember." 

"  I  wish  you  wouldn't  whisper  so  much,"  whis 
pered  back  Ruth.  "  People  are  looking  at  us  in 
an  annoyed  way.  What  is  the  matter  with  you, 
Marion  ?  I  never  knew  you  to  run  on  in  such 
an  absurd  way.  That  is  bad  enough  for 
Eurie  ! " 

"  I'm  developing,"  whispered  Marion.  "  It  is 
the  '  reflex  influence  of  Chautauqua '  that  you 
hear  so  much  about." 

Then  she  wrote  this  sentence  from  Dr.  Wai- 
den's  lips : 

"  Every  author  whose  books  go  into  the  Sab 
bath-school  is  as  much  a  teacher  in  that  school  as 
though  he  had  classes  there.  A  good  book  is  a 
book  that  will  aid  the  teacher  in  his  work  of 
bringing  souls  to  Christ.  I  have  known  the 


Heart  Touches.  165 

earnest  teaching  of  months  to  be  defeated  by 
one  single  volume  of  the  wrong  kind  being 
placed  in  the  hands  of  the  scholar." 

Suddenly  Marion  sat  upright,  slipped  her  pen 
cil  and  note-book  into  her  pocket,  and  wrote  no 
more.  A  sentence  in  that  address  had  struck 
home.  This  determination  to  enter  the  lists  as 
a  writer  was  not  all  talk.  She  had  long  ago  de 
cided  to  turn  her  talents  in  that  direction  as  the 
easiest  thing  in  the  line  of  literature,  whither 
her  taste  ran.  She  had  read  many  of  the  stand 
ard  Sunday-school  books ;  read  them  with  amused 
eyes  and  curling  lips,  and  felt  entirely  conscious 
that  she  could  match  them  in  intellectual  powei 
and  interest,  and  do  nothing  remarkable  then. 
But  there  rang  before  her  this  sentence : 

"Every  author  whose  books  go  into  the  Sab 
bath-school  is  as  much  a  teacher  in  that  school 
as  though  he  had  classes  there."  A  teacher  in 
the  Sabbath-school !  Actually  a  teacher.  She 
had  never  intended  that.  She  had  110  desire  to 
be  a  hypocrite.  She  had  no  desire  to  lead  astray, 
Could  she  write  a  book  that  young  people  ought 
to  bring  from  the  Sabbath-school  with  them,  and 
have  it  say  nothing  about  Christ  and  heaven  and 


106  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

the  Christian  life  ?  Surely  she  could  not  be  a 
teacher  without  teaching  of  these  things.  Mast 
she  teach  them  incidentally  ?  Was  saying  noth 
ing  about  them  speaking  against  them  ?  Dr. 
Walden  more  than  intimated  this. 

"  After  all,"  she  said,  speaking  to  Ruth  as  the 
address  closed,  "  I  don't  think  I  shall  commence 
my  book  yet." 

"Why?" 

"  Oh,  because  I  am  sacred."  Then,  impa 
tiently,  after  a  moment's  silence,  during  which 
they  changed  their  seats,  "I'm  disgusted  with 
Chautauqua!  It  is  going  to  spoil  me.  I  feel 
my  ambition  oozing  out  at  the  ends  of  my  toes, 
instead  of  my  fingers  as  I  had  designed.  Every 
body  is  so  awfully  solemn,  and  has  so  much  to 
say  about  eternity,  it  seems  we  can't  whisper 
to  each  other  without  starting  something  that 
doesn't  even  end  in  eternity.  But,  wasn't  he 
logical  and  eloquent?  " 

"I  don't  know,"  Ruth  said,  absently.  And 
she  wondered  if  Marion  knew  how  true  her 
words  were.  Ruth  had  heard  scarcely  a  word 
of  Dr.  Walden's  address  since  that  last  whisper, 
''  So  you  are  destined  to  immortality,  'reinem- 


Heart  Touches.  167 

her."  Words  spoken  in  jest,  and  yet  thrilling 
her  through  and  through  with  a  solemn  mean 
ing.  She  had  always  known  and  alwa}*s  be 
lieved  this.  She  was  no  skeptic,  yet  her  heart 
had  never  taken  it  in,  with  a  great  throb  of  anx 
iety,  as  it  did  at  that  moment.  Was  she  being 
led  of  the  Spirit  of  God  ? 

The  two  merely  changed  their  positions  and 
looked  about  them  a  little,  and  then  prepared  to 
give  attention  to  the  next  entertainment,  which 
was  a  story  from  Emily  Huntington  Miller. 
Marion  was  the  only  one  who  was  in  the  lea&t 
familiar  with  her,  she  being  the  only  one  who 
had  felt  that  absorbing  interest  in  juvenile  liter 
ature  that  had  led  her  to  keep  pace  with  the 
times. 

"  I'm  disposed  to  listen  to  her  with  all  due  re 
spect  and  attention,"  she  said,  as  she  rearranged 
herself  and  got  out  her  note-book.  "  She  is  one 
of  the  few  people  who  seem  not  to  have  bidden 
a  solemn  farewell  to  their  common  sense  wheii 
they  set  out  to  entertain  the  children.  I  have 
read  everything  she  ever  wrote,  and  liked  it,  too. 
I  set  out  to  make  an  idol  of  her  in  my  more  ju 
venile  days.  I  used  to  think  that  the  height  of 


168  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

my  ambition  would  be  attained  if  I  could  have  a 
long  look  at  her.  I'm  going  to  try  it  to-day, 
and  see  if  it  satisfies  me  ;  though  we  are  such 
aspiring  and  unsatisfied  creatures  that  I  strongly 
suspect  I  shall  go  on  reaching  out  for  something 
else  even  after  this  experience." 

Very  little  whispering  was  done  after  that  for 
some  time.  Although  Marion  made  light  of  her 
youthful  dreams,  there  was  a  strong  feeling  of 
excitement  and  interest  clustering  around  this 
first  sight  of  the  woman  whose  name  she  had 
known  so  long ;  and  something  in  the  fair,  sweet 
face  and  cultured  voice  fascinated  and  held  her, 
much  as  she  had  fancied  in  her  earlier  days 
would  be  the  case.  She  frowned  when  she 
heard  the  request  to  reporters  to  "lay  aside 
their  pencils."  She  had  meant  to  earn  laurels 
by  reporting  this  delicious  bit  of  imagery,  set  in 
between  the  graver  sermons  and  lectures ;  but, 
after  all,  it  was  a  rest  to  give  herself  up  to  the 
uninterrupted  enjoyment  of  taking  in  every 
word  and  tone  —  taking  it  in  for  her  own  pri 
vate  benefit.  "The  Parish  of  Fair  Haven." 
How  heartily  she  enjoyed  it.  The  refined  and 
delicate,  and  yet  keen  and  intense  satire  under- 


Heart  Touches.  169 

lying  the  whole  quaint  original  stoiy,  was  of 
just  the  nature  to  hold  and  captivate  her.  She 
was  just  in  the  mood  to  enjoy  it,  too.  For  was 
it  not  aimed  at  that  class  of  people  who  awak 
ened  her  own  keenest  sense  of  satire  —  the  so- 
called  "  Christian  world  "  ?  She  did  not  belong 
to  it,  you  know ;  in  her  own  estimation  was  en 
tirely  without  the  pale  of  its  sarcasm ;  stranded 
on  a  high  and  majestic  rock  of  unbelief  in  every 
thing,  and  in  a  condition  to  be  amused  at  the 
follies  of  people  who  played  at  belief;  and 
treated  what  they  played  was  solemn  realities 
as  if  they  were  cradle  stories  or  nicely  woven 
fiction.  There  was  no  listener  in  all  that  crowd 
who  so  enjoyed  the  keen  play  of  wit  and  the 
sharp  home  thrusts  as  did  Marion  Wilber.  Ruth 
was  a  little  undecided  what  to  think ;  she  did 
not  belong  to  the  class  who  were  hit,  to  be  sure, 
but  her  father  always  gave  largely  to  missions 
whenever  the  solicitor  called  on  him :  she  had 
heard  his  name  mentioned  with  respect  as  one 
of  the  most  benevolent  men  of  the  day ;  she  did 
cot  quite  like  the  very  low  and  matter-of-course 
place  which  Mrs.  Miller's  view  of  the  mission 
question  gave  him.  According  to  the  people  of 


170  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

Fair  Haven,  to  give  one's  thousands  to  the  cause 
was  tlie  most  commonplace  thing  in  the  world — 
not  to  do  so  was  to  be  an  inhuman  wretch. 
Ruth  didn't  quite  like  it  —  in  truth  she  was  just 
enough  within  the  circle  of  modern  Christianity 
to  feel  herself  slightly  grazed  by  the  satire. 

"It  is  absurd,"  she  said  to  Marion  as  they 
went  up  the  hill.  "  What  is  the  sense  in  a 
woman  talking  in  that  way?  As  if  people, 
were  they  ever  so  good  and  benevolent,  could 
get  themselves  up  in  that  ridiculous  manner ! 
If  we  live  in  the  world  at  all  we  have  to  have  a 
little  regard  for  propriety.  I  wonder,  if  she 
thinks  one's  entire  time  and  money  should  be 
devoted  to  the  heathen  ?  " 

Marion  answered  her  with  spirit. 

"  Oh,  don't  try  to  apologize  for  the  folly  that 
is  going  on  in  this  world  in  the  name  of  relig 
ion  !  It  can't  be  done,  and  sensible  people  only 
make  fools  of  themselves  if  they  attempt  it. 
There  is  nothing  plainer  or  more  impossible  to 
deny  than  that  church-members  give  and  work 
and  pray  for  the  heathen  as  though  they  were  a 
miserable  and  abominable  set  of  brutes,  who 
ought  to  be  exterminated  from  the  face  of  tho 


Heart  Touches.  171 

earth,  but  for  whom  some  ridiculous  fanatics 
called  'missionaries'  had  projected  a  wild  scheme 
to  do  something ;  and  they,  forsooth,  must  be 
kept  from  starving  somehow,  even  though  they 
had  been  unmitigated  fools ;  so  the  paltry  col 
lections  are  doled  out,  with  sarcastic  undertones 
about  the  '  waste  of  money,'  and  the  sin  of  mis 
sionaries  wearing  clothes,  and  expecting  to  have 
things  to  eat  after  throwing  themselves  away ! 
Don't  talk  to  me !  I've  been  to  missionary  so 
cieties  ;  I  know  all  about  it.  The  whole  system 
is  one  that  is  exactly  calculated  to  make  infidels. 
I  believe  Satan  got  it  up,  because  he  knew  in 
just  what  an  abominable  way  the  dear  Chris 
tians  would  go  at  it,  and  what  a  horrid  farce 
they  would  make  of  it  all." 

"  It  is  a  great  pity  you  are  not  a  Christian, 
Marion.  I  never  come  in  contact  with  any  one 
who  understands  their  duty  so  thoroughly  as 
you  appear  to,  and  I  think  you  ought  to  be 
practicing." 

Ruth  said  this  calmly  enough.  She  was  not 
particularly  disturbed;  she  did  not  belong  to 
them,  you  know ;  but  for  all  that  she  was  re 
motely  connected  with  those  who  did,  and  was 


172  Four  G-irls  at  Chautauqua. 

just  enough  jarred  to  make  her  give  this  quiet 
home  thrust.  Oddly  enough  it  struck  Marion 
as  it  never  had  before,  although  the  same  idea 
had  been  suggested  to  her  by  other  nettled  mor 
tals.  It  was  true  that  she  had  realized  ho\v  the 
practicing  ought  to  be  done,  and  a  vague  wish 
that  she  did  believe  in  it  all,  and  could  work  by 
their  professed  standard  with  all  her  soul,  flitted 
over  her. 

Meantime  Flossy  was  being  educated.  The 
morning  work  had  touched  her  from  a  different 
standpoint.  She  had  not  heard  Dr.  Walden; 
instead  she  had  wandered  into  a  bit  of  holy 
ground.  She  began  by  losing  her  way.  It  is 
one  of  the  easiest  things  to  do  at  Chautauqua. 
The  avenues  cross  and  recross  in  an  altogether 
bewildering  manner  to  one  not  accustomed  to 
newly  laid-out  cities ;  and  just  when  one  imag 
ines  himself  at  the  goal  for  which  he  started, 
lo  1  there  is  woods,  and  nothing  else  anywhere. 
Another  attempt  patiently  followed  for  an  hour 
has  the  exasperating  effect  of  bringing  him  to 
the  very  point  from  which  he  started.  Such  an 
experience  had  Flossy,  when  by  reason  of  her 
loitering  propensities  she  became  detached  from 


Heart  Touches.  173 

her  party,  and  tried  to  find  her  own  way  to  the 
stand.  A  whole  hour  of  wandering,  then  a  turn 
into  perfect  chaos.  She  had  no  more  idea  where 
she  was  than  if  she  had  been  in  the  by-ways  of 
London.  Clearly  she  must  inquire  the  way. 
She  looked  about  her.  It  was  queer  to  be  lost 
in  the  woods,  and  yet  be  surrounded  by  tents 
and  people.  She  stooped  and  peeped  timidly 
into  a  tent,  the  corner  of  which  was  raised  to 
admit  air,  and  from  which  the  sound  of  voices 
issued. 

"  Come  in,"  said  a  pleasant  voice,  and  the 
bright-faced  hostess  arose  from  the  foot  of  her 
bed  and  came  forward  with  greeting,  exactly  as 
though  they  had  been  waiting  for  Flossy  all  the 
morning.  <c\Vould  you  like  to  rest?  Come 
right  in,  we  have  plenty  of  room  and  the  most 
lovely  accommodations,"  and  a  silvery  laugh 
accompanied  the  words,  while  the  little  lady 
whisked  a  tin  basin  from  a  low  stool,  and  dust 
ing  it  rapidly  with  her  handkerchief  proffered 
her  guest  a  seat,  with  as  graceful  an  air  as 
though  the  stool  had  been  an  easy-chair  uphol 
stered  in  velvet.  The  only  other  sitting-place, 
th  «  low  bed.  was  full,  there  being  three  ladies 


174  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

tucked  about  on  it  in  various  stages  of  restful 
work,  for  they  had  books  and  papers  strewn 
about,  and  each  held  a  pencil  poised  as  if  ready 
for  action  at  a  moment. 

"I'm  afraid  I  intrude,"  Flossy  said,  sweetly; 
"  but  the  truth  is,  I  have  lost  my  friends  and  my 
way,  and  I  really  am  an  object  of  pity,  for  I 
have  been  wandering  up  hill  and  down,  till  my 
strength  is  less  than  it  was." 

"  Poor  child !  "  came  sympathetically  from  the 
bed,  spoken  by  the  eldest  of  the  ladies,  while 
another  rapidly  improvised  a  fan  out  of  the  Sun 
day-School  Times,  and  passed  it  to  her. 

Meantime  Flossy  looked  about  her  in  secret 
delight.  Something  about  the  air  of  the  tent 
and  the  surroundings,  and  an  indefinite  some 
thing  about  every  one  of  the  ladies,  told  her  as 
plainly  as  words  could  have  done  that  she  was 
among  the  workers ;  that  she  had  unwittingly 
and  gracefully  slipped  behind  the  scenes,  and 
had  been  cordially  admitted  to  one  of  the  work 
shops  of  Chautauqua ;  and  there  were  so  many 
things  she  wanted  to  know  I 


v 


CHAPTER  XII. 

FLOSSY  AT  SCHOOL. 


^IIE  hadn't  the  least  idea  who  they  were, 
but,  like  an  earnest  little  diplomatist,  she 
set  to  work  to  find  out. 

"I  started  for  the  auditorium," she  said.  "  I 
wanted  to  hear  Dr.  Walden,  but  he  has  had  time 
to  make  a  long  speech  and  get  through  since  I 
first  started.  I  think  it  must  be  nearly  eleven." 

"No,"  they  said  laughing,  "it  is  only  half  past 
ten."  Her  wanderings  had  not  been  so  long  as  they 
seemed ;  but  it  was  hardly  worth  while  to  try  to 
hear  anything  from  him  now,  she  would  not  be 
at  all  likely  to  get  a  seat ;  and,  besides,  his  time 
was  nearly  over.  She  would  better  wait  and  go 
down  with  them  in  time  for  .Mrs.  Miller. 

"We  were  obliged  to  miss  Dr.  Walden,"  the 
elder  lady  explained.  "  We  disliked  to  very 


176  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

much  ;  probably  it  was  as  instructive  as  any 
thing  we  shall  get ;  but  we  had  work  that  had  to 
be  done,  so  we  ran  away." 

"  Do  you  have  to  bring  work  to  Chautauqua 
with  you  ? "  Flossy  asked,  with  insinuating 
sweetness.  "  How  very  busy  you  must  be  !  I 
would  have  tried  to  run  away  from  my  work  for 
two  weeks  if  I  had  been  you." 

The  bright  little  hostess  laughed. 

"  Chautauqua  makes  work,"  she  said,  "  and 
somebody  has  to  get  ready  for  it.  This  lady  beside 
me  expects  an  overwhelming  Sabbath  class  here, 
and  much  time  has  to  be  given  to  the  lesson. 
We  lesser  mortals  are  ostensibly  going  to  help 
her,  but  in  reality  we  are  going  to  look  and  see 
how  she  does  it." 

"  Have  you  found  out  ?  "  Flossy  asked  in  a 
little  tremor  of  delight.  This  was  what  she 
wanted,  to  know  how  to  do  it  all. 

The  lady  who  had  been  pointed  out  as  teacher 
answered  her  quickly,  so  far  as  her  words  could 
be  said  to  be  an  answer  : 

"  Are  you  a  Sabbath-school  teacher  ?  " 

"  No,"  Flossy  said,  flushing  and  feeling  like  a 
naughty  child  whose  curiosity  had  led  her  into 


Flossy  at  School.  177 

mischief.  "  No,  I  am  not  anything,  but  I  want 
to  be ;  I  don't  know  how  to  work  at  all  in  an}^ 
way,  but  I  want  to  learn." 

"  Are  3'ou  looking  for  work  to  do  for  the  Mas 
ter  ?  "  the  same  lady  asked,  with  a  sweet  cheery 
voice  and  smile,  not  at  all  as  if  this  were  a  sub 
ject  which  she  must  touch  cautiously. 

"  Yes,"  Flossy  said,  her  cheeks  all  in  a  glow. 
"  She  did  not  know  how  to  work,  she  had  but 
just  found  out  that  she  wanted  to ;  indeed  she 
had  but  yesterday  known  anything  of  Him." 

Then  this  unusual  company  of  ladies  came 
with  one  consent  and  eager  eyes  and  voices  and 
took  her  hand,  and  said  how  glad  they  were  to 
welcome  her  to  the  ranks.  They  knew  she 
would  love  the  work,  and  the  rewards  were  so 
sure  and  so  precious.  All  this  was  new  and 
strange  and  delightful  to  Flossy.  Then  they 
began  each  eagerly  to  tell  about  their  work ; 
they  were  all  infant  or  primary  class  teachers, 
and  all  enthusiasts.  Who  that  has  to  do  with 
the  teaching  of  little  children  and  attains  to  any 
measure  of  success  but  is  largely  gifted  with 
this  same  element?  They  had  been  talking 
over  and  preparing  their  lesson  together,  and 


178  Four   Girls  at   CJiautauqua. 

they  talked  it  over  again  before  the  bewildered 
Flossy,  who  had  no  idea  that  there  was  such  a 
wonderful  story  in  all  the  Bible  as  they  were 
developing  out  of  a  few  bare  details. 

"  We  had  just  reached  the  vital  point  of  the 
entire  lesson,"  explained  the  leader,  "  the  place 
where  every  true  teacher  needs  most  help; 
where,  having  arranged  all  her  facts  and  got 
them  in  martial  order  in  her  brain,  she  wants  to 
know  the  best  way  of  making  those  facts  of  prac 
tical  present  service  to  the  little  children  who 
will  be  before  her,  and  at  this  point  I  think 
every  teacher  needs  to  go  to  the  fountain  head 
for  help.  We  were  just  going  to  pray;  you 
would  like,  perhaps,  to  join  us  for  just  a  few 
moments." 

"If  she  wouldn't  intrude,"  Flossy  said,  tim 
idly,  in  a  tremor  of  satisfaction ;  and  then  for 
the  first  time  in  her  life  she  bowed  with  a  com 
pany  of  her  own  sex,  and  heard  the  simple  ear 
nest  voice  of  prayer.  The  words  were  startlingly 
direct  and  simple,  and  Flossy,  who  had  been  full 
of  n^sterious  awe  on  this  question,  and  who 
mucli  doubted  whether  her  timid  whispers  alone 
in  her  tent  could  have  been  called  prayer,  was 
reassured  and  comforted. 


Flossy  at  School.  179 

If  this  were  prayer,  it  was  simply  talking  in 
a  sweet,  natural  voice,  and  in  the  most  simple 
and  natural  language,  with  a  dear  and  wisf 
friend.  It  was  the  most  quiet  and  yet  the  most 
confident  way  of  asking  for  just  what  one 
wanted,  and  nothing  more.  It  was  what  Flossy 
needed. 

She  took  long  strides  in  her  religious  educa 
tion  there  on  her  knees ;  and  as  they  went  out 
from  that  tent  and  down  the  hill  to  the  meeting, 
there  was  born  in  her  heart  an  eager  determina 
tion  to  enter  the  lists  as  a  Sabbath-school  teacher 
the  very  first  opportunity,  and  to  pray  her  lesson 
into  her  heart,  having  done  what  she  could  to 
get  it  into  her  head.  If  her  anxious  and  well- 
nigh  discouraged  pastor  could  have  been  gifted 
with  supernatural  and  prophetic  vision,  and  could 
have  seen  that  resolve,  and,  looking  ahead,  the 
fruit  that  was  to  be  borne  from  it,  how  would 
his  anxious  soul  have  thanked  God  and  taken 
courage ! 

In  this  mood  came  Flossy  to  listen  to  the  story 
of  "  The  Parish  of  Fair  Haven,"  as  it  flowed 
down  to  her  in  Mrs.  Miller's  smooth-toned  mu 
sical  voice.  One  who  conies  from  her  knees  to 


180  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

listen  is  sure  to  find  the  seed  if  it  has  been  put 
in.     Flossy  found  hers. 

Often  in  the  course  of  her  young  life  she  had 
been  at  church  and  sat  in  the  attitude  of  listener 
while  a  missionary  sermon  was  preached.  She 
had  heard,  perhaps,  ten  sentences  from  those 
sermons,  not  ten  consecutive  sentences,  but 
words  scattered  here  and  there  through  the 
whole ;  from  these  she  had  gathered  that  there 
was  to  be  a  collection  taken  for  the  cause  of 
Missions.  Just  where  the  money  was  to  go, 
and  just  what  was  to  be  done  with  it  when  it 
.arrived,  what  had  been  accomplished  by  mis 
sionary  effort,  what  the  Christian  world  was 
hoping  for  in  that  direction  —  all  these  things 
Flossy  Shipley  knew  no  more  about  than  her 
kitten  did. 

Perhaps  it  was  not  strange  then,  that  although 
abundantly  supplied  with  pin-money,  she  had 
never  in  her  life  given  anything  to  the  work  of 
Missions.  Not  that  she  would  not  willingly 
have  deposited  some  of  her  money  in  the  box  for 
whatever  use  the  authorities  chose  to  make  of  it 
had  she  happened  to  have  anj^ ;  but  young  la 
dies  as  a  rule  have  been  educated  to  imagine 


Flossy  at  School.  181 

that  there  is  one  day  in  the  week  in  which  their 
portnionnaies  can  be  off  duty.  There  being  no 
shopping  to  be  done,  no  worsteds  to  match,  no 
confectionary  to  tempt  what  earthly  use  for 
money  ?  So  it  was  locked  up  at  home.  This, 
at  least,  is  the  way  in  which  Flossy  Shipley  had 
argued,  without  knowing  that  she  argued  at  all. 
Now  she  was  looking  at  things  with  new 
eyes;  the  same  things  that  she  had  heard  of 
hundreds  of  times,  but  how  different  they  were  ! 
What  a  remarkable  scheme  it  was,  this  cariying 
the  story  of  Jesus  to  those  miserable  ignorant- 
ones,  getting  them  ready  for  the  heaven  that 
had  been  made  ready  for  them !  The  people 
of  "  Fair  Haven  "  did  not  appear  to  her  like  lu 
natics,  as  they  did  to  Ruth  Erskine.  She  was 
not,  you  will  remember,  of  the  class  who  had 
argued  this  question  in  their  ignorance,  and 
quie!ed  their  consciences  with  the  foolish  asser 
tion  that  the  church  collections  went  to  pay  sec 
retaries  and  treasurers  and  erect  splendid  public 
buildings.  She  belonged,  rather,  to  that  less 
hopeless  class  who  had  never  thought  at  all. 
Now,  as  she  listened,  her  eyes  brightened  with 
feeling  and  her  cheeks  glowed.  The  whole  sub- 


182  Four  G-lrls  at  Chautauqua. 

lime  romance  of  Missions  was  being  mapped  out 
to  her  on  the  face  of  that  quaint  allegory,  and 
her  heart  responded  warmly. 

Curiously  enough,  her  first  throbs  of  conscience 
were  not  for  herself  but  for  her  father.  The 
portly  gentleman  who  occasionally  sat  at  the 
head  of  the  Shipley  pew,  and  who  certainly 
never  parted  company  with  his  pocket-book  on 
Sabbath  or  on  any  other  day,  did  he  give  liberally 
to  Foreign  Missions  ? 

She  could  not  determine  as  to  the  probabilities 
of  the  case.  He  was  counted  a  liberal  man  — 
people  liked  to  come  to  him  to  start  subscrip 
tions  ;  but  Flossy  felt  instinctively  that  a  sub 
scription  paper  with  her  father's  name  leading  it 
was  different,  someway,  from  a  quiet,  baize-lined 
box,  and  no  noise  nor  words.  She  doubted 
whether  the  cause  had  been  materially  helped 
by  him. 

She  lost  some  sentences  of  the  story  while  she 
planned  ways  for  interesting  her  father  and  se 
curing  liberal  donations  from  him  ;  and  then  she 
was  suddenly  startled  back  to  personality  by 
hearing  some  astounding  statements  from  the 
reader. 


Flossy  at  School.  183 

"  It  would  be  so  easy  to  drop  into  a  household 
box  the  price  of  an  apple,  or  a  paper,  or  a  glass 
of  peanuts,  and  yet  who  does  it?  Why,  there 
are  young  ladies  who  will  actually  not  give  two 
cents  a  week  from  the  money  that  they  waste  ! " 

The  rich  blood  mounted  in  waves  to  Flossy 's 
forehead.  Apples  and  papers  were  not  in  her 
line,  but  peanuts!  wasn't  there  a  certain  stand 
which  she  passed  almost  daily  on  her  way  down 
town,  and  did  she  ever  pass  it  without  indulging 
in  a  glass  of  peanuts?  Neither  was  that  the 
end.  Why,  once  started  on  that  list,  and  her 
wastes  were  almost  numberless.  How  fond  she 
was  of  cream  dates,  and  how  expensive  they 
were;  and  oranges,  the  tempting  yellow  globes 
were  always  shining  at  her  from  certain  windows 
as  she  passed. 

Oh,  they  were  just  endless,  her  temptations 
and  her  falls  in  that  direction  —  only  who  had 
ever  supposed  that  there  was  any  harm  in  this 
lavish  treatment  of  herself  and  of  any  friends 
whom  she  happened  to  meet  ?  Yet  it  was  true 
that  she  had  never  given  any  money  at  all  to  the 
work  of  sending  the  Bible  to  those  who  are 
without  it. 


184  Four  Crirh  at  Chautauqua. 

"  They  will  not  give  two  cents  a  week,"  said 
Mrs.  Miller.  It  was  true :  she  had  not  given 
"  two  cents  a  week,"  or  even  two  cents  a  }Tear 
—  she  had  simply  ignored  the  existence  of  such 
a  need  for  money.  True,  she  had  not  been  a 
Christian ;  but  she  was  surprised  to  see  how  lit 
tle  this  refuge  served  her. 

"  I  have  been  a  human  being,"  she  told  her 
self,  with  a  flush  on  her  face,  "  and  I  ought  to 
have  had  sufficient  interest  in  humanity  to  have 
wanted  those  poor  creatures  civilized." 

But  there  was  another  thrust  preparing  for 
Flossy.  The  reader  present! y  touched  upon  one 
item  of  expenditure  common  to  ladies,  namely, 
kid  gloves ;  and  made  the  bewildering  state 
ment  that  economy  in  this  matter,  to  the  degree 
that  needless  purchases  should  be  avoided,  would 
treble  the  fund  In  the  missionary  treasury !  It 
could  not  be  that  from  among  that  sea  of  faces 
the  speaker  had  singled  out  Flossy  Shipley,  and 
yet  that  is  the  way  it  seemed  to  her.  If  there 
was  any  one  expense  which  stood  out  glaringly 
above  another  in  her  list  of  luxuries  it  was  kid 
gloves.  They  must  be  absolutely  immaculate  as 
to  quality,  shade  and  fit,  and  she  remorselessly 


Flossy  at  School.  185 

consigned  them  to  the  waste-bag  at  the  first  hint 
of  rip  or  change  of  color.  IIo\v  strange  that 
Mrs.  Miller  should  have  pitched  upon  just  that 
item,  and  what  an  amazing  declaration  to  make 
concerning  it ! 

It  was  very  strange,  had  any  one  been  looking 
on  to  observe  it,  the  manner  in  which  this  young 
girl  was  being  educated.  It  is  doubtful  if  a 
whole  year  of  church  work  in  the  regular  home 
routine,  listening  to  the  stated,  statistical  sermon 
of  her  pastor,  that  sermon  which  presupposes  so 
much  more  knowledge  than  people  possess,  would 
have  begun  to  do  for  Flossy  what  the  strange, 
fanciful,  pungent  story  of  "  Fair  Haven  "  did. 

Before  that  hour  was  closed  she  had  settled 
within  her  resolute  little  heart  a  plan  that  should 
henceforth  put  her  in  close  communion  and  sym 
pathy  with  mission  work  —  not  exactly  the  plans 
of  operation,  except  that  kid  gloves  and  peanuts 
took  stern  places  in  the  background,  but  this 
was  simply  the  foundation  for  a  resolute  sj'stem 
of  education,  carried  all  through  her  future  life. 

What  a  pity  it  seems  sometimes  that  people 
can  not  read  the  hearts  and  watch  the  springs  of 


186  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

action  of  those  around  them.  If  Mrs.  Miller,  as 
she  closed  her  paper  and  moved  away  from  the 
platform,  could  have  seen  the  earnest  purpose 
glowing  and  throbbing  in  Flossy 's  heart,  and 
have  known  that  it  was  born  of  words  of  hers, 
what  a  glad  and  thankful  heart  would  she  have 
carried  back  to  her  tent ! 

Also,  if  the  much  troubled  pastor  at  home 
could  have  taken  peeps  into  the  future  and  seen 
what  Flossy  Shipley's  resolves  would  do  for 
Missions,  how  glad  he  would  have  been! 

Perhaps  it  would  be  better  to  lay  all  the 
troubles  and  the  tangles  down  in  the  Hand  that 
overrules  it  all,  and  say,  in  peace  and  restful- 
ness,  "  He  knoweth  the  end  from  the  beginning." 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

"  CROSS  PURPOSES.  " 

HEN  people  start  out  with  the  express 
design  of  having  a  good  time,  irrespec 
tive  of  other  people's  plans  or  feelings  —  in  short, 
with  a  general  forgetful  ness  of  the  existence  of 
others  —  they  are  very  likely  to  find  at  the  close 
of  the  day  that  a  failure  has  been  made. 

It  did  not  take  the  entire  day  to  convince 
Euiie  Mitchell  that  Chantauqua  was  not  the 
synonym  for  absolute,  unalloyed  pleasure.  You 
will  remember  that  she  detached  herself  from 
her  party  in  the  early  morning,  and  set  out  to 
find  pleasure,  or,  as  she  phrased  it,  "  fun."  She 
imagined  them  to  be  interchangeable  terms.  She 

had  not  meant  to  be  deserted,  but  had  hoped  to 

(187) 


188  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

secure  Ruth  for  her  companion,  she  not  having 
the  excuse  of  wishing  to  report  the  meetings 
to  call  her  to  them.  Failing  in  her,  in  case  she 
should  have  a  fit  of  obstinacy,  and  choose  to  at 
tend  the  meetings,  Eurie  counted  fully  upon 
Flossy  as  an  ally.  Much  to  her  surprise,  and  no 
little  to  her  chagrin,  Flossy  proved  decidedly  the 
more  determined  of  the  two.  No  amount  of 
coaxing  —  and  Eurie  even  descended  to  the  em 
ployment  of  that  weapon  —  had  the  least  effect. 
To  be  sure,  Flossy  presented  no  more  powerful 
argument  than  that  it  did  not  look  well  to  come 
to  the  meeting  and  then  not  attend  it.  But  she 
carried  her  point  and  left  the  young  searcher  for 
fun  with  a  clear  field. 

Now  fun  rarely  comes  for  the  searching ;  it  is 
more  likely  to  spring  upon  one  unawares.  So, 
though  Eurie  walked  up  and  down,  and  stared 
about  her,  and  lost  herself  in  the  labyrinths  of 
the  intersecting  paths,  and  tore  her  dress  in  a 
thicket,  and  caught  her  foot  in  a  bog,  to  the 
great  detriment  of  shoe  and  temper,  she  still 
found  not  what  she  was  searching  for.  Several 
times  she  came  in  sight  of  the  stand;  once  or 
twice  in  sound  of  the  speaker's  voice ;  but  hav- 


"Cross  Purposes"  189 

ing  so  determinate^  carried  her  point  in  the 
morning,  she'did  not  choose  to  abandon  her  po 
sition  "and  appear  among  the  listeners,  though 
sorely  tempted  to  do  so.  '  She  wandered  into 
several  side  tents  in  hope  of  finding  something 
to  distract  her  attention ;  but  she  only  found 
that  which  provoked  her. 

In  one  of  them  a  young  lady  and  gentleman 
were  bending  eagerly  over  a  book  and  talking 
earnestly.  They  were  interesting  looking  peo 
ple,  and  she  hovered  near,  hoping  that  she  had 
at  hist  found  the  "  children  "  who  would  "  play  " 
with  her  —  a  remembrance  of  one  of  her  nursery 
stories  coming  to  her  just  then,  and  a  ludicrous 
sense  of  her  resemblance  to  the  truant  boy  who 
spent  the  long,  bright  day  in  the  woods  search 
ing  for  one  not  too  busy  to  play. 

But  these  two  were  discussing  nothing  of 
more  importance  than  the  lesson  for  the  coming 
1  Sabbath;  and  though  she  hovered  in  their  vicin 
ity  for  some  time,  she  caught  only  stray  words 
—  names  of  places  in  the  far  away  Judean  land, 
that  seemed  to  her  like  a  name  in  the  Arabian 
Nights ;  or  an  eager  dissertation  on  the  different 
views  of  eminent  commentators  on  this  or  that 


190  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

knotty  point;  and  so  engrossed  were  they  in 
their  work  that  they  bestowed  on  her  only  the 
slightest  passing  glance,  and  then  bent  over  their 
books. 

She  went  away  in  disgust.  At  the  next  tent 
half  a  dozen  ladies  were  sitting.  She  halted 
there.  Here  at  last  were  some  people  who,  like 
herself,  were  bored  with  this  everlasting  meet- 

'  O 

ing,  and  had  escaped  to  have  a  bit  of  gossip. 
Who  knew  but  she  might  creep  into  the  circle 
and  find  pleasant  acquaintances?  So  she  drew 
nearer  and  listened  a  moment  to  catch  the  sub 
ject  under  discussion.  She  heard  the  voice  of 
prayer ;  and  a  nearer  peep  showed  her  that 
every  head  was  bowed  on  the  seat  in  front,  and 
one  of  the  ladies,  in  a  low  voice,  was  asking  for 
enlightenment  on  the  lesson  for  the  coming  Sab- 
lath! 

"  What  wonderful  lesson  can  it  be  that  is  so 
fearfully  important  ? "  she  muttered,  as  she 
plunged  recklessly  into  the  mud  and  made  her 
way  in  all  haste  up  the  hill  without  attempting 
any  more  tents.  "  Who  ever  heard  such  an  ado 
made  about  a  Sunday-school  lesson  ?  These 
people  all  act  as  though  there  was  nothing  of  any 


"Cross  Purposes.  191 

consequence  anywhere  but  Sundaj'-schools.  I 
guess  it  is  the  first  time  that  such  a,  furor  was 
ever  gotten  up  over  teaching  a  dozen  verses  to  a 
parcel  of  children.  I  wonder  if  the  people  at 
home  ever  make  such  a  uproar  about  the  lesson  ? 
I  know  some  teachers  who  own  up,  on  the  way 
to  church,  that  they  don't  know  where  the  lesson 
is.  This  must  be  a  peculiar  one.  I  wonder  how 
I  shall  contrive  to  discover  where  it  is  ?  The 
girls  won't  know,  of  course.  With  all  their 
boasted  going  to  meeting  they  know  no  more 
about  lessons  than  T  do  mj-self.  I  would  really 
like  to  find  out.  I  mean  to  ask  the  next  person 
I  meet.  It  will  be  in  accordance  with  the  fashion 
of  the  place.  Think  of  my  walking  down 
Broadway  of  a  sunny  morning  and  stopping  a 
stranger  with  the  querj^,  'Will  you  tell  me  where 
the  lesson  is,  please  ?  ' '  And  at  this  point  Eurie 
burst  into  a  laugh  over  the  absurdity  of  the 
picture  she  had  conjured. 

"  But  this  is  not  Broadway,"  she  said  a  mo 
ment  afterward,  "  and  I  mean  to  try  it.  Here 
comes  a  man  who  looks  as  if  he  ought  to  know 
everything.  I  wonder  who  he  is  ?  I've  seen  his 
face  a  dozen  times  since  I  have  been  here.  He 


192  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

led  the  singing  yesterday.  Perhaps  he  knows 
nothing  but  sing.  They  are  not  apt  to  ;  but  his 
face  looks  as  though  he  might  have  a  few  other 
ideas.  Anyway,  I'll  try  him,  and  if  he  knows 
nothing  about  it,  he  will  go  away  with  a  con 
fused  impression  that  I  am  a  very  virtuous 
young  lady,  and  that  he  ought  to  have  known 
all  about  it ;  and  who  knows  what  good  seed 
may  be  sown  by  my  own  wicked  hand  ?  " 

Whereupon  she  halted  before  the  gentleman 
who  was  going  with  rapid  strides  down  the  hill, 
and  said,  in  her  clearest  and  most  respectful 
tone : 

"  Will  you  be  so  kind  as  to  tell  me  where  the 
lesson  for  next  Sabbath  commences?  I  have 
forgotten  just  where  ib  is." 

There  was  no  hesitation,  no  query  in  his  face 
as  to  what  she  was  talking  about,  or  uncertainty 
as  to  the  answer. 

"  It  is  the  fifth  chapter,  from  the  fifth  to  the 
fifteenth  verse,'  he  said,  glibly.  u  All  fives,  you 
see.  Easy  to  remember.  It  is  a  grand  lesson. 
Hard  to  teach,  though,  because  it  is  all  there. 
Are  you  a  teacher  for  next  Sunday  ?  You  must 
come  to  the  teachers'  meeting  to-morrow  morn- 


"Cross  Purposes."  193 

ing;  you  will  get  good  help  there.  Glorious 
meeting,  isn't  it  ?  I'm  so  glad  you  are  enjoying 
it."  And  away  he  went. 

Every  trace  of  ill-humor  had  vanished  from 
Eurie's  face.  Instead,  it  was  twinkling  with 
laughter. 

"  The  fifth  chapter  and  fifteenth  verse  "  of 
what  ?  Certainly  she  had  no  more  idea  than  the 
birds  had  who  twittered  above  her  head.  How 
entirely  certain  he  had  been  that  of  course  she 
knew  the  general  locality  of  the  lesson.  She  a 
teacher  and  coming  to  the  teachers'  meeting  for 
enlightenment  as  to  bow  to  teach  the  lesson  ! 

"  I  wonder  who  he  is  ?  "  she  -said  again,  as 
these  thoughts  flashed  through  her  brain,  and, 
following  out  the  next  impulse  that  came  to  her, 
she  stopped  an  old  gentleman  who  was  walking 
leisurely  down,  and  said,  as  she  pointed  out  her 
late  informant : 

"  What  is  that  man's  name,  please  ?  I  can't 
recall  it." 

"That,"  said  the  old  gentleman,  "is  Prof. 
Sherwin,  of  Newark.  Have  you  heard  him 
Bing?  " 

"Yes." 


194  Four   Girls  at   Chautauqua. 

"  "Well,  that  is  worth  hearing ;  and  have  you 
heard  him  talk  ?  " 

«  No." 

"  Well,  he  can  talk ;  you  will  hear  him,  and 
enjoy  it,  too  ;  see  if  you  don't.  But  I'll  tell  you 
what  it  is,  young  lady,  to  know  him  thoroughly 
you  ought  to  hear  him  pray  !  There  is  the  real 
power  in  a  man.  Let  me  know  how  a  man  can 
pray  and  I'll  risk  his  talking." 

Eurie  had  got  much  more  information  now 
than  she  had  asked  for.  She  ventured  on  no 
more  questions,  but  made  all  haste  to  her  tent, 
where,  seated  upon  a  corner  of  the  bed,  one  foot 
tucked  under  her  while  the  unfortunate  shoe 
tried  to  dry,  she  sewed  industriously  on  the  zig 
zag  tear  in  her  dress,  and  tried  to  imagine  what 
she  could  do  next.  Certainly  they  had  long 
days  at  Chautauqua.  "  I  shall  go  to  meeting 
this  afternoon,"  she  said,  resolutely,  "if  they 
have  three  sermons,  each  an  hour  long;  and 
what  is  more,  I  shall  find  out  where  that  Sun 
day-school  lesson  is." 

The  next  thing  she  did  was  to  write  a  letter 
to  her  brother  Nellis,  a  dashing  boy  two  years 
her  senior  and  her  favorite  companion  in  her 


"Cross  Purposes."  19* 

search  for  pleasure.     Here  is  a  copy  of  the  let 
ter: 


"  DEAR  NEL:  I  wish  you  were  here.  Chau- 
tauqua  isn't  so  funny  as  it  might  be.  There  are 
some  things  that  are  done  here  continually.  In 
the  first  place,  it  rains.  Why,  you  never  saw 
anything  like  it !  It  just  can't  help  it.  The 
sun  puts  on  a  bland  face  and  looks  glowing  in 
tentions,  and  while  you  are  congratulating  your 
next  neighbor  on  the  prospect,  she  is  engaged 
in  clutching  frantically  after  her  umbrella  to 
save  her  hat  from  the  first  drops  of  the  new 
shower.  Next,  they  have  meetings,  and  there  is 
literally  no  postponement  on  account  of  the 
weather.  It  is  really  funny  to  see  the  way  in 
which  the  people  rush  when  the  bell  rings,  rain 
or  shine.  Nel,  only  think  of  Flossy  Shipley  go 
ing  in  the  rain  to  hear  a  man  preach  of  the  "  In 
fluence  of  the  Press,"  or  something  of  that  sort! 
It  was  good  though,  worth  hearing.  I  went 
myself,  because,  of  course,  one  must  do  some 
thing,  and  the  frantic  fashion  of  the  place  is  to 
go  to  meeting.  At  the  same  time  I  don't  un 
derstand  Flossy  :  she  is  different  from  what  she 


196  1'our   Girls  at   Chautauqua. 

ever  was  at  home.  I  suppose  it  is  the  force  of 
the  many  shining  examples  all  around  her.  You 
know  she  always  was  a  good  little  sheep  about 
following  somebody's  lead. 

"  Marion  is  reporting,  and  has  to  be  indus 
trious.  She  is  queer,  Nel ;  she  professes  infidel 
ity,  you  know ;  and  you  have  no  idea  how  mad 
she  gets  over  anything  that  seems  to  be  casting 
reproach  on  Christianity  (unless  indeed  she  says 
it  herself,  which  is  often  enough,  but  then  she 
seems  to  think  it  is  all  right). 

"  Ruth  keeps  on  the  even  tenor  of  her  way. 
It  would  take  an  earthquake  to  move  that  girl. 

44 1  have  had  the  greatest  fan  this  morning.  I 
have  been  mistaken  for  a  Sabbath-school  teacher 
who  had  the  misfortune  to  forget  at  what  verse 
her  lesson  commenced  !  You  see  I  was  cultiva 
ting  new  acquaintances,  and  a  Prof.  Sherwin 
gave  me  good  advice.  That  and  some  other 
things  aroused  my  curiosity  concerning  that 
same  lesson,  and  I  am  going  to  find  out  where 
it  is. 

44  Did  you  know  that  Sunday-school  lessons 
were  such  remarkable  affairs  ?  The  one  for 
next  Sunday  must  comprise  the  most  wonderful 


"Cross  Purposes.'9  197 

portion  of  Scripture  that  there  is,  for  hundreds 
of  people  on  these  grounds  are  talking  about  it, 
and  I  stumbled  upon  a  party  of  ladies  this  morn 
ing  who  were  actually  praying  over  it ! 

"  Another  thing  I  overheard  this  morning, 
which  is  news  to  me,  that  all  the  world  was  at 
work  on  the  same  lesson.  That  is  rather  fasci 
nating,  isn't  it,  to  think  of  so  many  hundreds 
and  thousands  of  people  all  pitching  into  the 
same  verses  on  Sunday  morning?  It  is  quite 
sentimental,  too,  or  capable  of  being  made  so, 
for  instance,  by  a  great  stretch  of  your  imagina 
tion.  Suppose  you  and  me  to  be  very  deal 
friends,  separated  by  miles  of  ocean  we  will  say, 
and  both  devoted  Sabbath-school  teachers,  isn'i 
that  a  stretch  now?  Such  being  the  astonishing 
case,  wouldn't  it  be  pleasant  to  be  at  work  on 
the  same  lesson?  Don't  you  see?  Lets  play  do 
it.  You  look  up  the  lesson  for  next  Subbatlj 
and  so  will  I.  Won't  that  have  all  the  charm 
of  novelty  ?  Then  give  me  the  benefit  of  your 
ideas  acquired  on  that  important  subject,  and  I'll 
do  the  same  to  you.  Really,  the  more  I  think 
of  it  the  more  the  plan  delights  me.  1  wonder 
how  you  will  carry  it  out?  Shall  you  go  to 


198  Four  Grirls  at  Chaictauqua. 

Sunday-school  ?  What  will  the  duir  Doctor 
say  if  he  sees  you  walk  into  his  Bible-class  ?  I 
really  wish  I  were  there  to  enjoy  the  sensation. 
Meantime  I'm  going  to  look  up  an  altogether 
wonderful  teacher  for  myself,  and  then  for  com 
paring  notes.  My  spirits  begin  to  rise,  they 
have  been  rather  damp  all  the  morning,  but  I 
see  fun  in  the  distance. 

"  We  are  to  have  a  sensation  this  afternoon  in 
the  shape  of  a  troupe  of  singers  called  the  Ten- 
nesseeans  —  negroes,  you  know,  and  they  are  to 
give  slave-cabin  songs  and  the  like.  I  expect  to 
enjoy  it  thoroughly,  but  you  ought  to  see  Ruth 
curl  her  aristocratic  nose  at  the  thought. 

"  '  Such  a  vulgar  idea !  and  altogether  inappro 
priate  to  the  occasion.  She  likes  to  see  things 
in  keeping.  If  it  is  a  religious  gathering  let 
them  keep  it  such,  and  not  introduce  negro  min 
strels  for  the  sake  of  calling  a  low  crowd  to 
gether,  and  making  a  little  more  money.' 

"  Marion,  too,  shoots  arrows  from  her  sharp 
tongue  at  it,  but  she  rather  enjoys  the  idea,  just 
as  she  does  every  other  thing  that  she  chooses  to 
call  inconsistent  when  she  happens  to  be  the 
one  to  discover  it ;  but  woe  to  the  one  who  com 
ments  on  it  further  than  she  chooses  to  go. 


u  Cross  Purposes."  199 

•4  Flossy  and  I  now  look  with  utmost  tolera 
tion  on  the  dark  element  that  is  to  be  intro 
duced.  I  tell  Ruth  that  I  am  really  grateful  to 
the  authorities  for  introducing  something  that  a 
person  of  my  limited  capacities  can  appreciate, 
and  Flossy,  with  her  sweet  little  charitable  voice, 
has  "  no  doubt  they  will  choose  proper  things  to 
sing."  That  little  mouse  is  really  more  agreea 
ble  than  she  ever  was  in  her  life ;  and  I  am 
amazed  at  it,  too.  I  expected  the  dear  baby 
would  make  us  all  uncomfortable  with  her  fiui- 
fied  whims  ;  but  don't  you  think  it  is  our  lofty 
Ruth  who  is  decidedly  the  most  disagreeable  of 
our  party,  save  and  except  myself!  " 

This  interesting  epistle  was  brought  to  a  sud 
den  close  by  an  interruption.  A  gentleman 
came  with  rapid  steps,  and  halted  before  her 
tent  door,  which  was  tied  hospitably  back. 

"  I  beg  pardon,"  he  said,  speaking  rapidly, 
"but  this  is  Miss  Rider?" 

"  It  is  not,"  Eurie  answered,  with  promptness, 
at  which  information  he  looked  surprised  and  be 
wildered. 

"  Isn't  this  her  tent  ?     I  am  sorry  to  trouble 


200  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

you,  but  I  have  been  sent  in  haste  for  her.  She 
is  wanted  for  a  consultation,  and  I  was  told  I 
would  find  her  here.  Perhaps  I  might  leave  a 
message  with  you  for  her  ?  " 

"It  certainly  isn't  her  tent,"  Eurie  said,  try 
ing  to  keep  down  the  desire  to  laugh,  "and  I 
haven't  the  least  idea  where  she  is.  I  should 
be  glad  to  give  her  your  message  if  I  could,  but 
I  never  saw  the  lady  in  my  life,  and  have  no 
reason  to  expect  that  pleasure." 

Whereupon  her  questioner  laughed  outright. 

"  That  is  a  dilemma,"  he  said.  "  I  appreciate 
your  feelings,  for  I  am  precisely  in  the  same  po 
sition  ;  but  the  lady  was  described  minutely  to 
me,  and  I  certainly  thought  I  had  found  her.  I 
am  sorry  to  have  interrupted  }rou,"  and  he  bowed 
himself  away. 

A  new  curiosity  seized  upon  Eurie  —  the  de 
sire  to  see  Miss  Rider.  "She  must  be  one  of 
them,"  she  soliloquized,  falling  into  Flossy's  way 
of  speaking  of  the  workers  at  Chautauqua.  "  He 
said  she  was  wanted  for  a  consultation.  I  won 
der  if  she  can  be  one  of  those  who  are  to  take 
part  in  the  primary  exercises?  She  must  be 
young  for  such  prominent  work  if  she  looks  like 


"  Cross  Purposes." 


201 


me  ;  but  how  could  lie  know  that  since  he  never 
saw  her  ?  It  is  ve^  evident  that  I  am  to  go  to 
Sunday-school  next  Sabbath  anyhow,  if  I  never 
did  before,  for  now  I  have  two  items  of  interest 
to  look  up  —  a  lesson  that  is  in  the  'fifth  chapter, 
from  the  fifth  to  the  fifteenth  verse  of  something.'' 
and  a  being  called  '  Miss  Rider.' ?:  So  thinking 
she  hastily  concluded  and  folded  her  letter,  ready 
for  the  afternoon  mail,  without  a  thought  or  care 
as  to  the  seed  that  she  had  been  sending  away  in 
it,  or  as  to  the  fruit  it  might  bear;  without  the 
slightest  insight  into  the  way  she  was  being  led 
through  seeming  mistakes  and  accidents  up  to  a 
point  that  was  to  influence  all  her  future. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

THE  NEW  LESSON. 

URIE  turned  her  pillow,  thumped  the 
scant  feathers  into  little  heaps,  and  gave 
a  dismal  groan  as  she  laid  her  head  back  on  it. 

"  It  is  very  queer,"  she  said,  "  that  as  soon  as 
ever  I  make  up  my  mind  to  be  orthodox,  and  go 
to  meeting  every  time  the  bell  rings,  I  should  be 
dumped  into  a  heap  on  this  hard  bed  with  the 
headache.  I  haven't  had  a  touch  of  it  before." 

" '  The  way  of  transgressors  is  hard,'  "  quoted 
Marion,  going  on  calmly  with  her  writing.  "  If 
you  hadn't  taken  that  horrid  tramp  yesterday 
instead  of  going  to  meeting  like  a  Christian,  you 
would  have  been  all  right  to-day." 

"  I  believe  you  sit  up  nights  to  read  your  Bi- 

(202) 


The  Neiv  Lesson.  203 

ble,  so  as  to  have  verses  to  fling  at  people  who 
are  overtaken  in  any  possible  trial  or  inconven 
ience.  You  always  have  them  ready.  Didn't 
you  bring  it  with  you,  and  don't  you  prepare  a 
list  for  each  day's  use  ?  "  This  was  Eurie's  half 
merry,  half  petulant  reply  to  the  Bible  verse  that 
had  been  "  flung  "  at  her. 

Marion  carefully  erased  a  word  that  seemed  to 
her  fastidious  taste  too  inexpressive  before  she 
answered  : 

44 1  don't  own  such  an  article  as  a  Bible,  my 
child  ;  so  your  suspicions  are  entirely  unfounded. 
My  earl}-  education  was  not  defective  in  that  re 
spect,  however,  and  I  confess  that  I  find  many 
verses  that  seem  to  very  aptly  describe  the  ways 
of  sinful  mortals  like  yourself." 

Eurie  raised  herself  on  one  elbow,  regardless 
of  headache  and  the  cloth  wet  in  vinegar  that 
straightway  fell  off. 

"  You  don't  own  a  Bible  !  "  she  said,  in  utter 
surprise,  and  with  a  touch  of  actual  dismay  in  her 
voice. 

"  I  am  depraved  to  that  degree,  my  dear  little 
saint.  I  conclude  that  you  are  more  devoutly 
inclined,  and  have  one  of  your  own.  Pray  how 
many  chapters  a  day  do  you  read  in  it  ?  " 


204  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

Eurie  lay  down  again,  and  Flossy  came  with 
the  vinegar  cloth  and  bound  it  securely  on  her 
forehead. 

"  I  don't  read  in  it  very  often,  to  be  sure," 
Eurie  murmured.  "  In  fact  I  suppose  I  may  as 
well  say  that  I  never  do.  But  then  I  own  one, 
and  always  have.  I  am  not  a  heathen;  and 
really  and  truly  it  seems  almost  queer  not  to 
have  a  Bible  of  one's  own.  It  is  a  sort  of  mark 
of  civilization,  you  know." 

Marion  laughed  good-naturedly. 

"  I  never  make  a  great  deal  of  pretense  in  that 
line,"  she  said,  gayly.  "  As  for  being  a  heathen, 
that  is  only  a  relative  term.  According  to  Dr. 
Calkins,  they  were  more  or  less  in  advance  of 
us.  I  am  one  of  the  '  advanced '  sort.  Ruth, 
your  toilet  ought  to  be  nearly  completed  ;  I  hear 
that  indefatigable  bell." 

"  You  are  very  foolish  not  to  go  this  morning 
and  let  your  writing  wait.  We  shall  be  certain 
to  have  something  worth  listening  to ;  it  is  a 
strange  time  to  select  for  absence."  This  was 
Ruth's  quiet  answer,  as  she  pinned  her  lace  ruf 
fle  with  a  gleaming  little  diamond. 

"  '  Diligent  in  business.'      There   is  another 


The  New  Lesson.  205 

verse  for  you,  my  heathen,"  Marion  said,  with  a 
merry  glance  toward  Eurie.  "  When  you  get 
home  and  get  the  dust  of  years  swept  off  from 
your  Bible,  you  take  a  look  at  it,  and  see  if  I 
have  not  quoted  correctly.  And  a  good,  sensi 
ble  verse  ifc  is.  I  have  found  it  the  only  way  in 
which  to  keep  my  head  above  water.  Ruthie, 
the  trouble  is  not  with  me,  it  lies  with  those 
selfish  and  obstinate  newspaper  men.  If  they 
would  have  the  sense  to  let  their  papers  wait 
over  another  day  I  could  go  to  the  lecture  this 
morning.  As  it  is,  I  am  a  victim  to  their  indif 
ference.  If  I  miss  a  blessing  the  sin  will  be  at 
their  door,  not  mine." 

Eurie  opened  her  heavy  eyes  and  looked  at 
Flossy. 

"  Come,"  she  said,  "  don't  stand  there  mop 
ping  me  in  vinegar  any  longer.  Are  you 
ready?  lam  realty  disappointed..  I've  always 
wanted  to  hear  that  man.  I  want  to  tell  Nel 
about  him." 

Flossy  washed  her  hands,  shook  back  the  yel 
low  curls  with  an  indifferent  and  preoccupied 
air,  and  went  to  the  door  to  wait  for  Ruth.  She 
had  taken  no  part  in  the  war  of  words  that 


206  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

had  been  passing  between  Marion  and  Eurie, 
but  she  had  heard.  And  like  almost  everything 
else  that  she  heard  during  these  days,  it  had 
awakened  a  new  thought  and  desire.  Flossy 
was  growing  amazed  at  herself.  It  seemed  to 
her  that  she  must  have  spent  her  seven 
teen  years  of  life  taking  long  naps,  and  this 
Chautauqua  was  a  stiff  breeze  from  the  ocean 
that  was  going  to  shake  her  awake.  The 
special  thought  that  had  dashed  itself  at  her 
this  morning  was  that  she,  too,  had  no  Bible. 
Not  that  she  did  not  own  one,  elegantly  done  in 
velvet  and  clasped  in  gold,  so  effectually  clasped 
that  it  had  been  sealed  to  her  all  her  life.  She 
positively  had  no  recollection  of  having  ever  sat 
down  deliberately  to  read  the  Bible.  She  had 
"  looked  over  "  occasionally  in  school,  but  even 
this  service  of  her  eyes  had  been  fitful  aud  indif 
ferent  ;  and  as  for  her  head  pajdng  any  sort  of 
attention  to  the  reading,  it  might  as  well  have 
been  done  in  Greek  instead  of  French,  which 
language  she  but  dimly  comprehended  even 
when  she  tried.  But  now  she  ought  to  have  a 
Bible.  She  ought  not  to  wait  for  that  velvet 
covered  one.  A  whole  week  in  which  to  find 


The  New  Lesson.  207 

what  some  of  her  orders  were,  and  no  way  in 
which  to  find  them.  Of  course  she  could  buy 
one,  but  how  queer  it  would  seem  to  be  going  to 
the  museum  to  make  a  purchase  of  a  Bible  I 
"  They  will  wonder  why  I  did  not  bring  my  own," 
she  murmured,  with  that  life-long  deference  that 
she  had  educated  herself  to  pay  to  the  "  they  " 
who  composed  her  world.  And  in  another  instance 
the  new-born  feeling  of  respect  and  independence 
asserted  itself.  "  I  can't  help  that,"'  she  said, 
positively,  shaking  her  curls  with  a  determined 
air ;  "  and  it  really  makes  no  difference  what 
anybody  thinks.  Of  course  I  must  have  a  Bible, 
and  I  only  wish  I  had  it  for  this  morning,  I  shall 
certainly  get  one  the  first  opportunity."  Then 
she  turned  and  said  "  good-morning  "  to  the 
pretty  little  lady  who  occupied  the  tent  next 
door,  and  between  whom  and  herself  a  pleasant 
acquaintance  was  springing  up. 

"  Are  you  going  to  the  lecture  ?  "  Flossy, 
asked  and  the  small  lady  shook  her  head,  with  a 
wistful  air. 

"Dear  me,  no!  My  young  tyrant  wouldn't 
consent  to  that.  I  meant  to  take  him  down 
with  me  and  try  him,  but  he  has  gone  to  sleep  ; 


208  Four  G-irh  at  Chautauqua. 

and  it  is  just  as  well,  for  he  would  have  been 
certain  to  want  to  do  all  the  talking.  He  has 
no  idea  that  there  is  any  one  in  the  country  who 
knows  quite  as  much  as  he  does."  It  was  said 
in  a  half  complaining  tone,  but  underneath  it 
was  the  foundation  of  tender  pride,  that  sho\ved 
her  to  be  the  vain  mother  of  the  handsome  ty 
rant.  Still  it  seemed  to  be  Flossy's  duty  to  con 
dole  with  her. 

"You  miss  most  of  the  meetings,  do  you 
not?" 

"  Three-fourths  of  them.  You  see  it  is  incon 
venient  to  have  a  husband  who  is  reporter  for 
the  press,  and  who  must  be  there  to  hear.  It  is 
only  when  he  must  write  up  his  notes  for  publi 
cation  that  I  can  get  a  chance  ;  and  even  then, 
unless  it  is  baby's  sleepy  time,  it  does  me  no 
good.  I  am  especially  sorry  this  morning,  for 
Dr.  Cuyler  used  to  be  my  pastor.  He  married 
me  one  summer  morning  just  like  this,  and  I 
haven't  laid  eyes  on  him  since.  I  should  like  to 
hear  his  voice  again,  but  it  can't  be  done." 

Now  who  would  have  imagined  that,  with  all 
the  powers  that  were  bestirring  themselves  to 
come  to  Flosses  education,  it  would  have  been 


The  Neiv  Lesson.  209 

a  rosy,  crowing  baby,  in  the  unconsciousness  of 
a  morning  nap,  that  should  have  given  her  her 
first  lesson  in  unselfishness  ?  Yet  he  was  the  very 
one.  It  flashed  over  Flossy  in  an  instant  from 
some  source.  Who  was  so  likely  to  have  sug 
gested  it  as  the  sweet  angel  who  hovered  over 
the  sleeping  darling  ? 

"  Oh,  Mrs.  Adams,  let  me  stay  with  baby,  and 
you  go  to  hear  Cuyler.  It  is  a  real  pity  that  you 
should  miss  him,  when  he  is  associated  with  your 
life  in  this  way.  I  never  saw  him  ;  and  though, 
of  course,  I  should  like  to,  yet  I  presume  there 
will  be  opportunities  enough.  I  will  be  as  care 
ful  of  baby  as  if  he  were  my  grandson  ;  and  if 
he  wakens  I  will  charm  him  out  of  his  wits,  so 
that  it  will  never  occur  to  him  to  cry." 

Of  course  there  was  demurring,  and  profuse 
expressions  of  thanks  and  declinatures  all  in  a 
breath.  But  Flossy  was  so  winning,  so  eager, 
so  thoroughly  in  earnest ;  and  the  little  Mrs. 
Adams  did  so  love  her  old  pastor,  and  did  feel 
so  anxious  to  see  him  again,  that  in  a  very  short 
time  she  was  beguiled  into  going  in  all  haste  ta 
her  tent  to  make  a  "  go-to-meeting  "  toilet ;  and 
a  blessed  tiling  it  was  that  that  sentence  does  not 


210  Four  Girls  at   Chautauqua. 

mean  at  Chautauqua  what  it  does  in  Buffalo,  or 
Albany,  or  a  few  other  places,  else  Dr.  Cuyler 
might  have  slipped  from  them  before  the  neces 
sary  articles  were  all  in  array.  It  involved  sim 
ply  the  twitching  off  of  a  white  apron,  the  settling 
of  a  pretty  sun  hat  —  for  the  sun  actually  shone  ! 

—  and  the  seizure  of  a  waterproof,  needed,  if  she 
found  a  seat,  to  protect  her  from  the  damp  boards 

—  needed  in  any  case,  because  in  five  minutes  it 
might  rain  — and  she  was  ready. 

Ruth  came  to  the  door. 

"Come,  Flossy,"  she  said;  "where  in  the 
world  are  you  ?  We  shall  be  late."  And  said 
it  precisely  as  though  she  had  been  waiting  for 
that  young  person  for  half  an  hour. 

Flossy  emerged  from  the  adjoining  tent. 

"  I  am  not  going."  she  said.  "  I  have  turned 
nurse-girl,  and  have  the  sweetest  little  baby  in 
here  that  ever  grew.  Mrs.  Adams  is  going  in  my 
place.  Mrs.  Adams,  Miss  Erskine." 

And  as  those  two  ladies  walked  away  together 
Mrs.  Adams  might  have  been  heard  to  say : 

u  What  a  lovely,  unselfish  disposition  your 
friend  has !  It  was  so  beautiful  in  her  to  take 
me  so  by  storm  this  morning  I  I  am  afraid  I  was 


The  New  Lesson.  211 

very  selfish ;  which  is  apt  to  be  the  case,  I  think, 
when  one  comes  in  contact  with  actual  unselfish 
ness.  It  is  one  of  the  Christian  graces  that  is 
very  hard  to  cultivate,  anyway ;  don't  you  think 
so?" 

Ruth  was  silent;  not  from  discourtesy,  but 
from  astonishment.  It  was  such  a  strange  ex 
perience  to  hear  an}-  one  speak  of  Flossy  Shipley 
as  "  unselfish."  Jn  truth  she  had  grown  up  un 
der  influences  that  had  combined  to  foster  the 
most  complete  and  tyrannical  selfishness  —  exer 
cised  in  a  pretty,  winning  sort  of  way,  but  rooted 
and  grounded  in  her  very  life.  So  indeed  was 
Ruth's ;  but  she,  of  course,  did  not  know  that, 
though  she  had  clear  vision  for  the  mote  in 
Flossy's  eyes. 

Meantime  Marion  had  staid  her  busy  pen  and 
was  biting  the  end  of  it  thoughtfully.  The 
two  tents  were  such  near  neighbors  that  the  lat 
ter  conversation  and  introduction  had  been  dis 
tinctly  heard.  She  glanced  around  to  the  girl 
on  the  bed. 

"Eurie,"  she  said,  "are  you  asleep,  or  are  you 
enjoying  Flossy  'a  last  new  departure?" 

Eurie  giggled. 


212  Four   Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

"  I  heard,"  slie  said.  "  The  lazy  little  mouse 
has  slipped  out  of  a  tedious  hour,  and  has  a 
chance  to  lounge  and  read  a  pleasant  novel.  I 
dare  say  the  mother  is  provided  with  them." 

Then  Marion,  after  another  thoughtful  pause : 

"  But,  my  child,  how  do  you  account  for  the 
necessity  of  going  to  the  neighbors  and  taking 
the  supervision  of  a  baby  in  order  to  do  that? 
Flossy  need  not  have  gone  to  church  if  she 
didn't  choose." 

"  Yes  she  need.  Don't  you  suppose  the  child 
can  see  that  it  is  the  fashion  of  the  place  ?  She 
is  afraid  that  it  wouldn't  look  well  to  stay  in  the 
tent  and  lounge,  without  an  excuse  for  doing  so. 
If  that  girl  could  only  go  to  a  place  where  it  was 
the  fashion  for  all  the  people  to  be  good,  she 
would  be  a  saint,  just  because  '  they  '  were." 

"  She  would  have  to  go  to  heaven,"  muttered 
Marion,  going  on  with  her  writing. 

"  And,  according  to  you,  there  is  no  such 
place  ;  so  there  is  no  hope  for  her,  after  all.  Oh, 
dear!  I  wonder  if  }*ou  are  right,  and  nothing  is 
of  any  consequence,  anyhow  ?  "  And  the  weary 
girl  turned  on  her  pillow  and  tried  not  to  think, 
an  effort  that  was  hard  to  accomplish  after  a 
week's  experience  at  Chautauqua. 


The  New  Lesson.  213 

Flossy  sat  herself  down  beside  the  sleeping 
darling,  and  cast  about  her  for  something  to 
amuse  or  interest,  her  eyes  brightening  into 
beauty  as  she  recognized  a  worn  and  torn  copy 
of  the  Bible.  Eurie  would  have  been  surprised 
to  see  the  eagerness  with  which  she  seized  upon 
the  book  that  was  to  afford  her  entertainment. 
She  turned  the  leaves  tenderly,  with  a  new 
sense  of  possession  about  her.  Thie>  Bible  was  a 
copy  of  letters  that  had  been  written  to  her  — 
words  spoken,  many  of  them,  by  Jesus  himself. 
Strange  that  she  had  so  little  idea  what  they 
were  !  Marion,  with  her  boasted  infidel  notions, 
knew  much  more  about  "  The  Book "  than 
Flossy  with  her  nominal  Christian  education 
and  belief.  She  had  no  idea  where  to  turn  or 
what  to  look  for  to  help  her.  Yet  she  turned 
the  leaves  slowly,  with  a  delicious  sense  of  hav 
ing  found  a  prize  a  —  book  of  instructions,  a 
guide  book  for  her  on  this  journey  that  she  was 
just  beginning  to  realize  that  she  was  taking. 
Someivhere  within  it  she  would  find  light  and 
help.  The  book  was  one  that  had  been  much 
used,  and  had  a  fashion  of  opening  of  itself  at 
certain  places  that  might  have  been  favorites 


214  Four  Grirls  at  Chautauqua. 

with  the  little  mother.  At  one  of  those  places 
Flossy  halted  and  read  :  " '  After  this  there  was 
a  feast  of  the  Jews.'  After  what,  I  wonder?  "  she 
said  within  herself.  She  knew  nothing  about 
it.  "  Never  mind,  I  will  see  pretty  soon.  This 
is  about  a  feast  where  Jesus  was.  And  Jesus 
went  up  to  Jerusalem."  Oh,  how  nice  to  have 
been  there,  wherever  that  was."  The  ignorant 
little  thing  had  not  the  least  idea  where  Jerusa 
lem  was,  except  that  it  was  in  that  far  away, 
misty  Holy  Land,  that  had  seemed  as  vague  and 
indefinite  to  her  as  the  grave  or  as  heaven.  But 
there  came  suddenly  to  her  heart  a  certain 
blessed  analogy. 

"  If  I  were  going  to  write  an  account  of  my 
recent  experiences  to  some  dear  friend  that  I 
wanted  to  tell  it  to,"  she  said,  talking  still  to 
herself,  or  to  the  sleeping  baby,  "  I  would  write 
it  something  like  this :  '  After  this  '  —  That 
would  mean  ;  let  me  see  what  it  would  mean. 
Why,  after  that  party  at  home,  when  I  danced 
all  night  and  was  sick.  'After  this  .there  was  a 
feast  of  the  Christian  people  at  Chautauqua,  and 
Jesus  went  there.'  I  could  certainly  write  that, 
for  I  have  seen  him  and  heard  him  speak  in  my 
very  heart."  Then  she  went  on,  through  the 


The  New  Lesson.  215 

second  verse  to  the  third.  "  *  In  these  lay  a  great 
multitude  of  impotent  folk,  of  blind,  halt,  with 
ered,  waiting  for  the  moving  of  the  water,' "  and 
here  a  great  swell  of  tears  literally  blinded  her 
eyes.  It  came  to  her  so  suddenly,  so  forcibly. 
The  great  multitude  here  at  Chautauqua — 
blind.  Yes,  some  of  them.  Was  not  she? 
How  many  more  might  there  be  ?  Many  of 
whom  she  knew,  others  that  she  did  not  know, 
but  that  Jesus  did.  Waiting  without  knowing 
that  they  were  waiting.  With  tears  and  smiles, 
and  with  a  new  great  happiness  throbbing  at  her 
heart,  she  read  through  the  sweet,  simple,  won 
derful  story ;  how  the  poor  man  met  Jesus  ;  how 
he  questioned ;  how  the  man  complained ;  and 
how  Jesus  was  greater  than  his  infirmity. 
Through  the  whole  of  it,  until  suddenly  she 
closed  the  book,  her  tears  dried,  and  a  solemn, 
wondering,  almost  awe-struck  look  on  her  face. 
She  had  got  her  lesson,  her  directions,  her  ex 
ample.  She  could  bear  no  more,  even  of  the 
Bible,  just  then.  She  said  it  over,  that  startling 
verse  that  came  to  her  with  a  whole  volume  of 
suggestion:  "''And  the  man  departed  and  told 
the  Jews  that  it  was  Jesus  which  had  made  him 
whole:  " 


CHAPTER  XV. 

GEEAT  MEN. 

UTH  ERSKINE,  with  her  skirts  gath- 
erecl  daintily  around  her,  to  avoid  con 
tact  \\lth  the  unclean  earth,  made  her  way  skill 
fully  through  the  crowd,  and  with  the  aid  of  a 
determined  spirit  and  a  camp-chair  secured  a 
place  and  a  seat  very  near  the  stand.  The  little 
lady  who  timidly  followed  in  her  lead  was  not 
quite  so  fortunate,  inasmuch  as  she  had  no 
camp-chair,  and  was  less  resolved  in  her  deter 
mination  to  get  ahead  of  those  who  had  arrived 
earlier;  so  she  contented  herself  with  a  damp 
seat  on  the  end  of  a  board,  which  was  vacated 
for  her  use  by  a  courteous  gentleman. 

Ruth,  you  must  understand,  was  not  selfish  in 
(216) 


G-reat  Men.  217 

this  matter  because  she  had  planned  to  be,  but 
simply  because  it  had  never  occurred  to  her  to 
be  otherwise,  which  is  one  of  the  misfortunes 
that  come  to  people  who  are  educated  in  a  self 
ish  atmosphere.  Ruth  Erskine  had  come  to  this 
meeting  fully  prepared  to  enjoy  it.  Dr.  Cuyler 
was  a  star  of  sufficient  magnitude  to  attract  her. 
During  her  frequent  visits  to  New  York  she  had 
heard  much  of  but  had  never  seen  him.  The 
people  whom  she  visited  were  too  elegant  in 
their  views  and  practices  to  have  much  in  com 
mon  with  the  church  which  was  so  pronounced 
on  the  two  great  questions  of  religion  and  tem 
perance.  Yet,  even  with  them,  Dr.  Cuyler  and 
Dr.  Cuyler's  great  church  were  eccentricities  to 
be  tolerated,  not  ignored.  Therefore  Ruth  had 
had  it  in  her  heart  to  enjoy  listening  to  him 
sometime.  The  sometime  had  arrived.  She 
had  dressed  herself  with  unusual  care,  a  cere 
mony  which  seemed  to  be  quite  in  the  back 
ground  among  the  people  who  were  at  home  at 
Chautauqua.  But  someway  it  seemed  to  Ruth 
that  the  great  Brooklyn  pastor  should  receive 
this  mark  of  respect  at  her  hands ;  so  she  had 
spent  the  morning  at  her  toilet  and  was  now  a 
fashionable  lady,  fashionably  attired  for  church. 


218  Four  G-irls  at  Chautauqua. 

If  the  people  who  vouchsafed  her  a  glance  as 
she  crowded  past  indulged,  some  of  them,  in  a 
smile  at  her  expense,  and  thought  the  simple 
temple  made  of  trees  and  grasses  an  inappro 
priate  surrounding  to  her  silken  robes  and  costly- 
lace  mantle,  she  was  none  the  wiser  for  that, 
you  know,  and  took  her  seat,  indifferent  to  them 
all,  except  that  presently  there  stole  over  her 
the  sense  of  disagreeable  incongruity  with  her 
outdoor  surroundings;  so  Satan  had  the  pleasure 
of  ruffling  her  spirits  and  occupying  her  thoughts 
with  her  rich  brown  silk  dress  instead  of  letting 
her  heart  be  touched  with  the  solemnity  and 
beauty  of  the  grand  hymn  \\hich  rolled  clown 
those  long  aisles.  Satan  has  that  everlasting 
weapon,  "  What  to  wear,  and  what  not  to  wear," 
everlastingly  at  command  and  wonderfully  un 
der  his  control.  But  Ruth,  in  her  way,  was 
strong-minded  and  could  control  her  thoughts 
when  she  chose ;  so  she  presently'  shook  off  the 
feeling  of  annoyance  and  decided  to  give  her 
self  up  to  the  influences  of  the  hour. 

By  this  time  Dr.  Cuyler  appeared  and  was  in 
troduced.  Ruth  gave  him  the  benefit  of  a  very 
searching  gaze,  and  decided  that  he  was  the  very 


I 
Great  Men.  219 

man  of  all  those  on  the  platform  whom  she 
would  have  selected  as  the  speaker.  Probably 
if  Dr.  Cuyler  had  known  this,  and  known  also 
that  his  personal  presence  entirely  disappointed 
her,  he  would  not  have  been  greatly  discon 
certed  thereby.  But  his  subject  was  one  that 
found  an  answering  thrill  in  this  young  lady's 
heart  —  "  Some  Talks  I  Have  Had  With  Great 
Men."  Ruth  liked  greatness.  In  her  calm, 
composed  way  she  bowTed  before  it.  She  would 
have  enjoyed  being  great.  Celebrity  in  a  ma 
jestic,  dignified  form  would  have  been  her  de 
light.  She  by  no  means  admitted  this,  as  Eurie 
Mitchell  so  often  did.  She  by  no  means  sought 
after  it  in  the  small  ways  within  her  reach. 
Small  ways  did  not  suit  her ;  they  disgusted  her. 
But  if  she  could  have  flashed  into  splendid 
greatness,  if  by  any  amount  of  laborious  study, 
or  work,  or  suffering,  she  could  have  seen  the 
way  to  world-wide  renown  she  wrould  have 
grasped  for  it  in  an  instant. 

The  next  best  thing  to  being  renowned  one's 
self  was  to  have  renowned  people  for  friends. 
This  was  another  thing  that  Ruth  coveted  in  si 
lence.  She  wanted  110  one  to  know  how  ear- 


220  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

nestly  slie  aspired  to,  sometime,  making  the  ac 
quaintance  of  some  of  the  great  people  not  —  tin 
vulgarly  great,  those  who  were  in  a  sense.  and| 
in  the  eyes  of  a  few,  great  because  of  the  accil 
dents  of  fortune  and  travel.  She  knew  such  by 
the  scores.  Indeed,  she  had  been  in  circles 
many  a  time  where  she  shone  with  that  sort  of 
greatness  herself.  Perhaps  it  was  for  that  rea 
son  that  it  was  such  a  despised  height  to  her. 
But  she  meant  the  really  great  people  of  this 
world  —  people  of  power,  people  who  moved  the 
masses  by  the  force  of  their  brains.  Not  one 
such  had  she  ever  met  to  look  upon  as  an  ac 
quaintance  ;  and  here  was  this  man  telling  off 
the  honored  names  by  the  score,  and  saying, 
"  My  friend,  Dr.  Guthrie  "  —  "  My  good  friend, 
Thomas  Carlyle  "  —  My  dear  brother,  Newman 
Hall."  How  would  it  seem  to  stand  in  intimate 
relationship  with  one  single  gifted  mind  like 
these,  and  was  she  destined  ever  to  know  by 
actual  experience  ? 

There  was  another  reason  why  Ruth  had  de 
sired  to  choose  Dr.  Cuyler  to  listen  to  rather 
than  some  other  names  on  the  programme,  be 
cause,  from  the  nature  of  his  subject,  she  had 


G-reat  Men.  221 

indued  it  most  unlikely  that  lie   should   have 

JO  •/ 

bout  him  any  arrows  that  would  touch  home  to 
ier.  Not  that  she  put  it  in  that  language  ;  she 
lid  not  admit  even  to  herself  that  any  of  the 
solemn  words  that  had  been  spoken  at  Chautau- 
a  had  reference  to  her ;  and  yet  in  a  vague, 
itful  way  she  was  ill  at  ease. 

She  had  moments  of  feeling  that  there  was  a 
•each  of  happiness  possessed  by  these  people  of 
which  she   knew  nothing.     Little   side    thrusts 
md   come  to  her  from  time  to  time  in  places 
vhere  she  least  expected  them.     That  question, 
.tasked   by  Flossy  during   her   night  of   unrest, 
fl  Should  you  be  afraid  to  die  ?  "  hovered  around 
[this  quietly  poised  young  lady  in  a  most  unac- 
|countable    manner.     All   the  more  persistently 
!did  it  cling  because  she  could  not  shake  it  off 
'with  the  thought  that  it  was  silly.     Common 
sense  told  her  that  the  strange,  solemn  shadow, 
which  came  so  steadily  after  men,  and  so  surely 
:  enveloped  one  after  another  among  the  grandest 
i  intellects  that  the  world  owned,  was  not  a  thing 
to  pass  over  lightly. 

,     After  all,  why  should  she  not  be  afraid  of 
death  ?     Then  that  strange  gentleman  who  had 


222  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

persisted  in  ranking  her  among  the  praying  peo 
ple  !  he  had  left  his  shadow.  Why  did  she  not 
pray  ?  She  wondered  over  this  in  a  vague  sort 
of  way;  wondered  how  it  seemed  to  kneel  down 
alone,  and  speak  to  an  invisible  presence ;  won 
dered  if  those  who  so  knelt  always  felt  as 
though  they  were  really  speaking  to  God. 

There  were  times  when  Ruth  was  exceedingly 
disgusted  with  these  perplexing  thoughts,  and 
wanted  nothing  so  much  as  to  get  away  from 
them.  She  resented  this  intrusion  upon  her 
quiet.  This  day  was  one  of  those  in  which  she 
was  impatient  of  all  these  things,  and  she  had 
made  her  toilet  with  great  satisfaction,  and  said 
within  herself  complacently :  "  We  are  to  have 
one  hour  at  last  devoted  to  this  mundane  sphere 
and  the  mortals  who  inhabit  it ;  most  of  the 
time  these  Chautauquans  talk  and  act  as  though 
earth  was  only  a  railroad  station,  where  people 
changed  cars  and  went  on  to  heaven.  Dr.  Cuy- 
ler  is  going  to  refresh  us  with  some  actual  living 
specimens  of  humanity.  He  can't  make  a  ser 
mon  out  of  that  subject  if  he  tries." 

But  Ruth  Erskine  had  not  measured  the  power 
of  the  earnest  preachers  of  Jesus  Christ.  As  if 


Great  Men.  223 

Dr.  Ciller  could  talk  for  an  hour  to  thousands 
of  immortal  souls,  and  leave  Christ  and  heaven 
and  immortality  out. 

To  Ruth  these  three  words  constituted  a  ser 
mon,  and  she  got  them  that  day.  Not  that  he 
had  an  idea  that  he  was  preaching  Christ,  except 
incidentally,  as  a  man  refers  almost  unconsciously 
to  the  one  whom  he  loves  best  in  all  the  world  • 
but  Ruth  knew  he  was.  It  came  in  little  sud 
den  touches  when  she  least  expected  it,  when 
heart  and  soul  were  wrought  upon  with  some 
strong  enthusiasm  by  the  splendid  picture  of  a 
splendid  man  —  as  when  he  told  of  Spurgeon. 
It  was  a  glowing  description,  such  as  thrilled 
Ruth,  and  made  her  feel  that  to  have  just  one 
glimpse  of  that  great  man,  with  his  great  mar 
velous  power  over  humanity,  would  be  worth  a 
lifetime. 

Suddenly  the  speaker  said:  "The  secret  of 
that  man's  power  lies,  first,  in  his  study  of  the 
Bible."  Ruth  started  and  came  down  like  a 
bomb-shell  from  her  wondrous  height.  The 
Bible  !  copies  of  which  lay  carelessly  on  every 
table  of  her  father's  elegantly  furnished  house, 
unstudied  and  unthought  of.  How  very  strange 


224  Four  Grirls  at  Chautauqua. 

to  ascribe  the  power  of  the  great  intellect  to  the 
study  of  one  book  that  was  more  or  less  familiar 
to  every  Sunday-school  boy.  "  Second,  in  short, 
simple,  homely  language."  Ruth  smiled  now. 
Dr.  Cuyler  was  growing  absurd,  as  if  it  were  not 
the  most  common  thing  in  the  world  to  use  sim 
ple,  homely  language  !  No  Spurgeons  could  be 
manufactured  in  that  wajr,  she  was  sure.  "  Third, 
mighty  earnestness  to  save  souls."  Here  was  a 
point  concerning  which  Ruth  knew  nothing. 

Dr.  Cuyler's  manner  put  tremendous  force 
into  the  forceful  words,  and  carried  conviction 
with  them.  She  wondered  how  a  really  mighty 
earnestness  to  save  souls  made  a  man  appear  ? 
She  wondered  whether  she  had  ever  seen  such  a 
GriQ  ;  she  went  rapidly  over  the  list  of  her  ac 
quaintances  in  the  church.  She  smiled  to  her 
self  a  sarcastic,  contemputous  smile  ;  she  had  met 
them  all  at  parties,  concerts,  festivals,  and  the 
like  ;  she  had  seen  them  on  occasions  when  noth 
ing  seemed  to  possess  them  but  to  have  a  good  time 
like  the  rest  of  the  world. 

Like  the  rest  of  the  world,  Ruth  reasoned  and 
decided  from  her  chance  meetings  with  the  out 
side  life  of  these  Christians,  forgetting  that  she 


Great  Men.  225 

had  never  seen  one  of  them  in  their  closets  be 
fore  God ;  rather,  she  knew  nothing  about  these 
closets,  nor  the  experiences  learned  there,  and 
could  only  reason  from  outside  life.  This  being 
the  case,  what  a  pity  that  her  verdict  of  those 
lives  should  have  called  forth  only  that  contempt 
uous  smile !  Wandering  off  in  this  train  of 
thought,  she  lost  the  speaker's  next  point,  but 
was  called  back  by  his  solemn,  ringing  close. 

"Put  these  together,  melt  them  down  with 
the  love  of  Christ,  and  you  have  a  Spurgeon. 
God  be  thanked  for  such  a  piece  of  hand  work 
as  he !  " 

Another  start  and  another  retrospect.  Did  she 
know  any  people  who  put  these  together ;  who 
made  a  real,  earnest,  constant  study  of  the  Bible 
as  school  girls  studied  their  Latin  grammars,  and 
who  were  really  eager  to  save  souls  because  they 
had  the  love  of  Christ  in  their  hearts,  and  who 
said  so  in  plain  simple  language  ?  "  Does  he,  I 
wonder  ?  "  she  said  to  herself.  "  I  wonder  if  his 
sermons  sound  like  that  ?  I  should  like  to  hear 
him  preach  just  once.  Oh,  dear  !  if  he  isn't  run 
ning  off  to  Moody  and  Sankey.  It  is  a  sermon 
after  all  1 " 


226  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

On  the  whole,  Ruth  was  disgusted.  Her  brain 
was  in  a  whirl;  she  was  being  compelled  to  hear 
sermons  on  every  hand.  She  was  sick  of  it. 
They  had  been  great  men  of  whom  she  had 
heard,  and  she  admired  them  all ;  she  wanted 
the  secret  of  their  power,  but  she  didn't  want  it 
to  be  made  out  of  such  commonplace  material  as 
was  in  the  hands  of  every  child.  She  did  not 
know  what  she  wanted  —  only  that  she  had  come 
out  to  be  entertained  and  to  revel  in  her  love  of 
heroes,  and  she  had  been  pinned  down  to  the  one 
thought  that  real  men  were  made  of  those  who 
found  their  power  in  their  Bible  and  on  their 
knees. 

The  solemn,  earnest,  tender  closing  to  this  ad 
dress  did  not  lessen  her  sense  of  discomfort.  Then 
just  beside  her  was  carried  on  a  conversation 
that  added  to  her  annoyance. 

"  They  are  big  men,"  a  man  said.  He  was 
dressed  in  a  common  business  suit;  his  linen 
had  not  the  exquisite  freshness  about  it  that  her 
fastidious  eyes  delighted  in  ;  his  hands  looked  as 
though  they  might  have  been  used  to  work  that 
was  rough  and  hard  ;  his  straggling  hair  was 
sprinkled  with  gray,  and  there  was  not  a  striking 
feature  about  him. 


Great  Men.  227 

"  They  are  big  men,"  he  said,  "  and  IVe  no 
doubt  ifc  is  a  big  thing  to  know  them,  and  talk 
with  them,  and  have  a  friendly  feeling  for  each, 
as  if  they  belonged  to  him,  but  he  knows  a  big 
ger  one  than  them,  and  the  best  of  it  is,  so  do 
we.  The  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  our  Elder  Brother, 
is  not  to  be  compared  to  common  men  like 
these." 

And  now  Ruth's  lips  curled  utterty.  She  was 
an  aristocrat  without  knowing  it.  She  believed 
in  Christianity,  and  in  its  power  to  save  the 
poor  and  the  commonest,  but  this  insufferable 
assumption  of  dignity  and  superiority  over  the 
rest  of  the  world,  as  she  called  it,  was  hateful  to 
her  in  the  extreme.  It  would  have  startled  her 
exceedingly  to  have  been  told  that  she  was 
angry  with  the  man  for  presuming  to  place  his 
Friend  higher  in  the  list  of  great  ones  than  any  of 
those  given  that  day  ;  and  yet  such  was  actually 
her  feeling.  She  swept  her  skirts  angrily  away 
from  contact  with  the  man,  and  spoke  so  crustily 
to  the  little  lady  who  had  come  in 'her  wake 
that  she  moved  timidly  away. 

Just  at  her  left  were  two  gentlemen  shaking 
hands.  Both  had  been  on  the  stand  together ; 


228  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

she  knew  the  faces  of  both,  and  one  ranked  just 
a  trifle  higher  in  her  estimation  than  any  one  at 
Chautauqua.  She  edged  a  little  nearer.  She 
lived  in  the  hope  of  making  the  acquaintance  of 
some  of  these  lights,  just  enough  acquaintance 
to  receive  a  bow  and  a  clasp  of  the  hand,  though 
how  one  could  accomplish  it  who  was  determined 
that  her  interest  in  them  should  neither  be  seen 
nor  suspected,  it  would  be  hard  to  say ;  but 
they  were  talking  in  eager,  hearty  tones,  not  at 
all  as  if  their  words  were  confidential  —  at  least 
she  might  have  the  benefit  of  them. 

"  That  was  a  capital  lecture,"  the  elder  of  the 
two  was  saying.  "  Cuyler  has  had  great  advan 
tages  in  his  life  in  meeting  on  a  familiar  footing 
so  many  of  our  great  men.  When  you  get 
thinking  of  these  things,  and  of  the  many  men 
whom  you  would  like  to  know  intimately,  what 
is  the  thought  that  strikes  you  most  forcibly  ?  " 

"  That  I  am  glad  I  belong  to  the  '  royal  fam 
ily,'  and  have  the  opportunity  of  knowing  inti 
mately  and  holding  close 'personal  relations  with 
Him  who  '  spake  as  never  man  spake.' ' 

The  other  answered  in  a  rare,  rich  tone  of 
suppressed  jubilance  of  feeling. 


Great  Hen.  229 

"  Exactly  !  "  his  friend  said ;  "  and  when  you 
can  leave  the  fullness  of  that  thought  long 
enough  to  take  another,  there  is  the  looking  for 
ward  to  actual  fellowship  and  communion  not 
only  with  him,  but  with  all  these  glorious  men 
who  are  living  here,  and  who  have  gone  up  yon 
der.'' 

Ruth  turned  abruptly  away.  The  very 
thought  that  possessed  the  heart  of  the  plain- 
looking  man  and  that  so  annoyed  her  ;  and  these 
two,  whom  to  know  was  an  honor,  were  looking 
forward  to  that  consummation  as  the  height  of 
it  all  I 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

A  WAR   OF  WORDS. 

ELL,  why  not?"  she  said,  as  she  went 
slowly  clown  the  aisle.  Of  course  all 
these  people  would  be  in  heaven  to 
gether,  and  why  should  they  not  look  forward 
to  a  companionship  untrameled  by  earthly  forms 
and  conventionalities,  and  uncumbered  by  the 
body  in  its  present  dull  and  ponderous  state  ? 
What  a  chance  to  get  into  the  best  society  !  the 
highest  circle  !  real  best,  too,  not  made  up  of 
mone3r,  or  blood,  or  dress,  or  any  of  the  flimsy 
and  silly  barriers  that  fenced  people  in  and  out 
now.  Then  at  once  she  felt  her  own  inconsist 
ency  in  growing  disgusted  with  the  plainly- 
dressed,  common-looking  man.  If  he  did  really 
belong  to  that  "  royal  family,"  why  not  rejoice 

(230) 


A   War  of  Words.  231 

over  it  ?  Wasn't  she  the  foolish  one  ?  She  by 
no  means  liked  these  reflections,  but  she  could 
not  get  away  from  them. 

"  How  do  you  do?"  said  a  clear,  round  voice 
behind  her ;  not  speaking  to  her,  but  to  some 
one  whom  he  was  very  glad  to  see,  judging  from 
his  tone.  And  the  voice  was  peculiar  ;  she  had 
been  listening  to  it  for  an  hour,  and  could  not 
be  mistaken;  it  belonged  to  Dr.  Cuyler  him 
self.  She  turned  herself  suddenly.  Here  was 
a  chance  for  a  nearer  view,  and  to  see  who  wa? 
being  greeted  so  heartily.  It  was  the  little  lady 
whose  society  had  been  thrust  upon  her  that 
morning  by  Flossy.  And  they  were  shaking 
hands  as  though  they  were  old  and  familiar  ac 
quaintances  I 

"  It  is  good  to  see  your  face  again,"  that  same 
hearty  voice  which  seemed  to  have  so  much  good 
fellowship  in  it  was  saying.  "  1  didn't  know  you 
were  to  be  here  ;  I'm  real  glad  to  see  you  again, 
and  what  about  the  husband  and  the  dear 
boy?" 

At  which  point  it  occurred  to  Miss  Ruth  Ers- 
kine  that  she  was  listening  to  conversation  not 
designed  for  her  ears.  She  moved  away  sud- 


2o2  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

denly,  in  no  way  comforted  or  sweetened  as  to 
her  temper  by  tliis  episode.  Why  should  that 
little  bit  of  an  insignificant  woman  have  the 
honor  of  such  a  cordial  greeting  from  the  great 
man,  while  he  did  not  even  know  of  her  exist 
ence  ? 

To  be  sure,  Dr.  Cuyler  had  baptized  and  re 
ceived  into  church  fellowship  and  united  in 
marriage  the  little  woman  with  whom  he  was 
talking ;  but  Ruth,  even  if  she  had  known  these 
circumstances,  was  in  no  mood  to  attach  much 
importance  to  them. 

She  wandered  away  from  the  crowd  down  by 
the  lake-side.  She  stopped  at  Jerusalem  on  her 
way,  and  poked  her  parasol  listlessly  into  the 
sand  of  which  the  hills  lying  about  that  city 
were  composed,  and  thought : 

"  What  silly  child's  play  all  this  was  !  How  ab 
surd  to  suppose  that  people  were  going  to  get 
new  ideas  by  playing  at  cities  with  bits  of  painted 
board  and  piles  of  sand  !  Even  if  they  could  get 
a  more  distinct  notion  of  its  surroundings,  what 
difference  did  it  make  how  Jerusalem  looked,  or 
where  it  stood,  or  what  had  become  of  the 
buildings?" 


A   War  of  mrds.  233 

This  last,  as  it  began  dimly  to  dawn  upon  her, 
that  it  was  useless  to  deny  the  fact  that  even 
such  listless  and  disdainful  staring  as  she  had 
vouchsafed  to  this  make-believe  city  had  located 
it,  as  it  had  not  been  located  before,  in  her 
brain. 

When  she  produced  the  flimsy  question, 
%l  What  difference  does  it  make  ?  "  you  can  see  at 
once  the  absurd  mood  that  had  gotten  possession 
of  her,  and  }TOU  lose  all  your  desire  to  argue  with 
any  one  who  feels  as  foolish  as  that.  Neither 
had  Ruth  any  desire  to  argue  with  herself;  she 
was  disgusted  with  her  mind  for  insisting  on 
keeping  her  up  to  a  strain  of  thought. 

"  A  lovely  place  to  rest !  "  she  said,  aloud,  and 
indignantly,  giving  a  more  emphatic  poke  with 
her  parasol,  and  quite  dislodging  one  of  the 
buildings  in  Jerusalem.  "  One's  brain  is  just 
kept  at  high  pressure  all  the  time." 

Now,  why  this  young  lady's  brain  should  have 
been  in  need  of  rest  she  did  not  take  the  trouble 
to  explain,  even  to  herself.  She  sat  herself 
down  presently  under  one  of  the  trees  by  the 
lake-side  and  gave  herself  up  to  plans.  She  was 
tired  of  Chautauqua ;  of  that  she  was  certain. 


234  Four  Crifls  at  CTiautauqua. 

It  stirred  her  up,  and  the  process  was  uncom 
fortable.  Her  former  composed  life  suited  her 
taste  better.  She  must  get  away.  There  was 
no  earthly  reason  why  she  should  not  go  at  once 
to  Saratoga.  A  host  of  friends  were  already 
there,  and  certain  other  friends  would  be  only 
too  glad  to  follow  as  soon  as  ever  they  heard  of 
her  advent  in  that  region.  Before  she  left  than 
rustic  settee  under  the  trees  she  had  the  pro 
gramme  all  arranged. 

"  We  will  get  through  to-morrow  as  we  best 
can,"  she  said,  sighing  over  the  thought  that  to 
morrow  being  the  Sabbath  would  perforce  be 
spent  there,  "and  then  on  Monday  morning 
Flossy  and  I  will  just  run  away  to  Saratoga  and 
leave  those  two  absurd  girls  to  finish  their  ab 
surd  scheme  in  the  best  way  they  can." 

And  having  disposed  of  Flossy  as  though  she 
were  a  bit  of  fashionable  merchandise  without 
any  volition  of  her  own,  Ruth  felt  more  com 
posed  and  went  at  once  to  dinner. 

There  came  an  astonishing  interference  to  this 
planning,  from  no  other  than  Flossy  herself.  To 
the  utter  amazement  of  each  of  the  girls,  she 
quietly  refused  to  be  taken  to  Saratoga ;  nor  did 


A  War  of  Words.  235 

she  offer  any  other  excuse  for  this  astonishing 
piece  of  self-assertion  than  that  she  was  having 
a  good  time  and  meant  to  finish  it.  And  to  this 
she  adhered  with  a  pertinacity  that  was  very  be 
wildering,  because  it  was  so  very  new.  Marion 
laughed  over  her  writing,  to  which  she  had  re 
turned  the  moment  dinner  was  concluded. 

"  That  is  right,  Flossy,"  she  said,  "  I'm  glad  to 
see  Chautauqua  is  having  an  effect  of  some  sort 
on  one  of  us.  You  are  growing  strong-minded; 
mind  isn't  a  bad  thing  to  have ;  keep  to  }^ours. 
Ruth,  I  am  astonished  at  you;  I  shall  have  to 
confess  that  you  are  disappointing  me,  my  child. 
Now,  I  rather  expected  this  dear  little  bit  of  lace 
and  velvet  to  give  up,  conqured,  in  less  than  a 
week,  but  I  said  to  myself,  '  Ruth  Erskine  has 
pluck  enough  to  carry  her  through  a  month  of 
camp-life, 'and  here  you  are  quenched  at  the  end 
of  four  days." 

"  It  isn't  the  camp-life,"  Ruth  said,  irritably. 
"I  am  not  so  much  a  baby  as  to  care  about  those 
things  to  such  a  degree  that  I  can't  endure  them, 
though  everything  is  disagreeable  enough ;  but 
that  isn't  the  point  at  all." 

Marion  turned  and  looked  at  her  curiously. 


230  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

"  What  on  earth  is  the  point  then  ?  What 
has  happened  to  so  disgust  you  with  Chautau- 
qua?" 

"  The  point  is,  that  I  am  tired  of  it  all.  It  is 
unutterably  stupid  !  I  suppose  I  have  a  right 
to  be  tired  of  a  silly  scheme  that  ought  never  to 
have  been  undertaken,  if  I  choose  to  be,  have  I 
not,  without  being  called  in  question  by  any 
one  ?  " 

And  feeling  more  thoroughly  vexed,  not  only 
with  the  girls,  but  with  herself,  than  ever  she  re 
membered  feeling  before,  Ruth  arose  suddenly 
and  sought  refuge  under  the  trees  outside  the 
tent. 

Marion  maintained  a  puzzled  silence.  This 
was  a  new  phase  in  Ruth's  character,  and  one 
hard  to  manage. 

Flossy  looked  on  the  point  of  crying.  She 
was  not  used  to  crossing  the  wills  of  those  who 
had  influence  over  her,  but  she  was  very  deter 
mined  as  to  one  thing :  she  was  not  going  to 
leave  Chautauqua. 

"  Nothing  could  tempt  me  to  go  to  Saratoga 
just  now,"  she  said,  earnestly. 

"  Why  ?  "    asked    Marion,  and  receiving  no 


A   War  of  Words.  237 

answer  at  all  felt  that  Flossy  puzzled  her  as 
much  as  Rath  had  done.  However,  she  set  her 
self  to  work  to  restore  peace. 

"  This  letter  is  done,"  she  said,  gayty,  folding 
ler  manuscript.     "  It  is  a  perfectly  gushing  ac 
count  of  yesterday's  meeting,  for  some  of  which 
'  am  indebted  to  the  Buffalo  reporters  ;  for  I 
lave   given   the   most   thrilling   parts    where  I 
wasn't  present.     Now    I'm   going   to  celebrate. 
Dome  in,  Ruth,  we  are   of  the  same  mind  pre- 
isely.     I  would  gladly  accompany  you  on  the 
fternoon  train    to   Saratoga  with   the  greatest 
pleasure,  were  it  not  for  certain  inconveniences 
connected  with  my  pocket-book,  and  a  desire  to 
replenish  it  by  writing  tip  this  enterprise.     But 
ince  we  can't  go  to  Saratoga,  let's  }*ou  and  I  go 
;o  Mayville.     It  is  a  city  of  several  hundred  in 
habitants,  six  or  eight,  certainly,  I  should  think  ; 
and  \ve  can  have  an  immense  amount  of  fun  out 
of  the  people  and  the  sights  this  afternoon,  and 
scape  the  preaching.     I  haven't  got  to  write  an 
other  letter  until  Monday.     Come,  shall  we  take 
the  three  o'clock  boat  ?  " 

.  Neither  of   these    young    ladies   could  have 
told  what  possible  object  there  could  be  in  leav- 


288  Four  Girls  at  Ohautauqua. 

ing  the  lovely  woods  in  which  they  were  camped 
and  going  off  to  the  singularly  quiet,  uninterest 
ing  little  village  of  Mayville,  except  that  it  was, 
as  they  said,  a  getting  away  from  the  preaching  — 
though  why  two  young  ladies,  with  first-class 
modern  educations,  should  find  it  so  important 
to  get  themselves  away  from  some  of  the  first 
speakers  in  the  country  they  did  not  stop  to  ex 
plain  even  to  themselves.  However,  the  plan 
came  to  Ruth  as  a  relief,  and  she  unhesita 
tingly  agreed  to  it ;  so  they  went  their  ways  — 
Flossy  to  the  afternoon  meeting  (since  Eurie  de 
clared  herself  so  far  convalescent  as  to  be  en 
tirely  able  to  remain  alone)  and  the  two  of  the 
party  who  had  prided  themselves  up  to  this 
time  on  their  superiority  of  intellect  down  to  the 
wharf  to  take  the  boat  for  Mayville. 

The  ride  thither  on  the  lovely  lake  was  almost 
enough  to  excuse  them  for  their  folly.  But  the 
question  what  to  do  with  themselves  afterward 
was  one  that  burdened  them  during  all  that  long 
summer  afternoon.  They  went  to  the  Mayville 
House  and  took  a  walk  on  the  piazza,  and  the 
boarders  looked  at  them  in  curiosity,  and  won 
dered  if  it  were  really  a  pleasanter  walk  than 
the  green  field*  over  at  Chautauqua. 


A   War  of  Words.  239 

They  ordered  dinner  and  ate  it  at  the  general 
table  with  great  relish,  Ruth  rejoicing  over  this 
return  to  civilized  life.  One  episode  of  the  table 
must  be  noted.  Opposite  them  sat  a  gentleman 
who,  either  from  something  in  their  appearance, 
or  more  probably  from  the  reasonable  conclusion 
that  all  the  strangers  who  had  gathered  at  the 
quiet  little  village  were  in  some  way  associated 
with  the  great  gathering,  addressed  them  as  be 
ing  part  of  that  great  whole. 

44  You  people  are  going  to  reap  a  fine  harvest, 
pecuniarily,  to-morrow ;  but  how  about  the 
fourth  commandment  ?  You  Christians  lay  great 
stress  on  that  document  whenever  a  Sunday  read 
ing-room  or  something  of  that  sort  is  being  con 
templated,  don't  you  ?  " 

The  remark  was  addressed  to  both  of  them, 
but  Ruth  was  too  much  occupied  with  the 
strangeness  of  the  thought  that  she  was  again 
being  counted  among  "  Christian  people "  to 
make  any  answer.  Not  so  Marion.  Her  eyes 
danced  with  meriment,  but  she  answered  with 
great  gravity : 

"  We  believe  in  keeping  Iwly  the  Sabbath  day, 
of  course.  What  has  that  to  do  with  Chautau- 


240  Four  G-irls  at  Chautauqua. 

qua?  Haven't  3^011  consulted  the  programme 
and  read :  c  No  admission  at  the  gates  or 
docks'?" 

The  gentleman  smiled  incredulously. 

"  I  have  read  it"  he  said,  significantly,  "  and 
doubtless  many  believe  it  implicitly.  I  hope 
their  faith  won't  be  shaken  by  hearing  the  re 
turns  from  tickets  counted  over  in  the  even- 
ing." 

There  was  a  genuine  flush  of  feeling  on  Mar 
ion's  face  no\v. 

"  Do  you  mean  to  say,"  she  asked,  haughtily, 
"  that  you  have  no  faith  in  the  published  state 
ment  that  the  gates  will  be  closed,  or  do  }TOU 
mean  that  the  association  have  changed  their 
minds?  Because  if  you  have  heard  the  latter,  I 
can  assure  you  it  is  a  mistake,  as  I  heard  the  mat 
ter  discussed  by  those  in  authority  this  very 
morning  ;  and  they  determined  to  adhere  rigidly 
to  the  rules." 

"  I  have  no  doubt  they  will,  so  far  as  lies  in 
their  power,"  the  gentleman  said,  with  an  at 
tempt  at  courtesy  in  his  manner.  "But  the 
trouble  is,  the  thing  is  absurd  on  the  face  of  it. 
If  I  hold  a  ticket  for  an  entertainment,  which 


A   War  of  Words.  241 

the  Association  have  sold  to  me,  it  is  none  of 
their  business  on  what  day  I  present  it,  provided 
the  entertainment  is  in  progress.  They  have  no 
right  to  keep  me  out,  and  they  are  swindling  me 
out  of  so  much  money  if  they  do  it." 

"  You  have  changed  your  argument,"  Marion 
said,  with  a  flash  of  humor  in  her  eyes.  "  You 
were  talking  about  the  amount  of  money  that 
the  Association  were  to  earn  to-morrow,  not  the 
amount  which  you  were  to  lose  by  not  being  al 
lowed  to  come  in.  However,  I  am  wiling  to 
talk  from,  that  standpoint.  If  }*ou  hold  the  sea 
son  ticket  of  the  Association,  and  are  stopping 
outside,  you  will  be  admitted,  of  course.  It  is 
held  to  be  as  reasonable  a  way  to  go  to  church 
as  though  you  harnessed  your  horses  at  home 
and  drove,  on  the  Sabbath,  to  your  regular  place 
of  worship.  But  you  buy  no  ticket/ar  the  Sab 
bath,  and  none  is  received  from  you ;  and  if  you 
choose  not  to  go,  the  Association  neither. makes 
nor  loses  by  the  operation,  and,  so  far  as  money 
is  concerned,  is  entirely  indifferent  which  you 
decide  to  do.  What  fault  can  possibly  be  found 
with  such  an  arrangement  ?  " 

"  Well,"  said  the  gentleman,  with  a  quiet  pos- 


242  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

itiveness  of  tone,  "  I  haven't  a  season  ticket,  and 
I  don't  mean  to  buy  one,  and  I  mean  to  go  down 
there  to  meeting  to-morrow,  and  I  expect  to  get 
in." 

"  I  dare  say,"  Marion  answered,  with  glowing 
cheeks.  "  The  grounds  are  extensive,  you  know, 
and  they  are  not  walled  in.  I  haven't  the  least 
doubt  but  that  hundreds  can  creep  through  the 
brush,  and  so  have  the  gospel  free.  There  is 
something  about  'he  that  climbeth  up  some 
other  way  being  a  thief  and  a  robber ; '  but,  of 
course,  the  writer  could  not  have  had  .Chautau 
qua  in  mind  ;  and  even  if  it  applies,  it  would  be 
only  stealing  from  an  Association,  which  is  not 
stealing  at  all,  you  know." 

"  You  are  hard  on  me,"  the  gentleman  said, 
flushing  in  his  turn,  and  the  listeners,  of  whom 
there  were  many,  laughed  and  seemed  to  enjoj 
the  flashing  of  words.  "  I  have  no  intention  of 
creeping  or  climbing  in.  I  shall  present  the 
same  sort  of  ticket  which  took  me  in  to-day,  and 
if  it  doesn't  pass  me  I  will  send  you  a  dispatch 
to  let  you  know,  if  you  will  give  me  your  ad 
dress." 

"And  if  you  do  get  in,  and  will  let  me  know, 


A  War  of  Words.  243 

I  will  report  at  once  to  the  proper  authorities 
that  the  gate-keepers  have  been  unfaithful  to 
their  trust,"  said  Marion,  triumphantly. 

"  But,  my  dear  madam,  what  justice  is  there 
in  that  ?  I  have  paid  my  money,  and  what 
business  is  it  to  them  when  I  present  my  ticket? 
That  is  keeping  me  out  of  my  just  dues." 

"  Oh,  not  a  bit  of  it ;  that  is,  if  you  can  read, 
and  have,  as  you  admit,  read  their  printed  state 
ment  that  you  are  not  invited  to  the  ground  on 
Sunday.  Your  fifty-cent  ticket  will  admit  you 
on  Monday.  And  you  surely  will  not  argue 
that  the  Association  has  not  a  right  to  limit  the 
number  of  guests  that  it  will  entertain  over  the 
Sabbath?" 

"  Yes,  I  argue  that  it  is  their  business  to  let 
me  in  whenever  I  present  their  ticket." 

Marion  laughed  outright. 

"  That  is  marvelous ! "  she  said.  "  It  is  wicked 
for  them  to  receive  payment  for  your  coming  in 
on  the  Sabbath,  and  it  is  wicked  for  them  not  to 
let  you  in  on  your  ticket.  Realty,  I  don't  see 
what  the  Association  are  to  do.  They  are  com 
mitting  sin  either  way  it  is  put.  I  see  no  way 
out  of  it  but  to  have  refused  to  sell  you  any 


244  Four  Girls  at  CJiautauqua. 

tickets  at  all.  Would  that  have  made  ifc 
right?" 

The  laugh  that  was  raised  over  this  innocently 
put  question  seemed  to  irritate  her  new  ac 
quaintance.  He  spoke  hastily. 

"  It  is  a  Sabbath-breaking  concern,  viewed  in 
any  light  that  you  choose  to  put  it.  There  is  no 
sense  in  holding  camp-meetings  over  the  Sab 
bath,  and  every  one  agrees  that  they  have  a  de 
moralizing  effect." 

"Do  you  mean  me  to  understand  you  to  think 
that  the  several  thousand  people  who  are  now 
stopping  at  Cbautauqua  will  be  breaking  the 
Sabbath  by  going  out  of  their  tents  to-morrow 
and  walking  down  to  the  public  service?" 

The  bit  of  sophistry  in  this  meekly  put  ques 
tion  was  overlooked,  or  at  least  not  answered, 
and  the  logical  }roung  gentleman  asked : 

"  If  they  think  Sabbath  services  in  the  woods 
FO  helpful,  why  are  they  not  consistent?  Let 
them  throw  the  meeting  open  for  all  who  wish 
to  come,  making  the  gospel  without  money  and 
without  price,  as  they  pretend  it  is.  .  Why  isn't 
that  done?" 

*'  Well,  there  are  at  least  half  a  dozen  reasons. 


A   War  of  Words.  245 

I  wonder  you  have  not  thought  of  one  of  them. 
In  the  first  place,  that,  of  course,  would  tempt 
to  a  great  deal  of  Sabbath  traveling,  a  thing 
which  they  carefully  guard  against  now  by  re 
fusing  to  admit  all  travelers.  And  in  the  sec 
ond  place,  it  would  give  the  Chautauqua  people 
a  great  deal  to  do  in  the  way  of  entertaining  so 
large  a  class  of  people.  As  it  is,  they  have  quite 
as  much  as  they  care  to  do  to  make  comfortable 
the  large  company  who  belong  to  their  family. 
And  in  the  third  place  —  But  perhaps  you  do 
not  care  to  hear  all  the  reasons  ?  " 

He  ignored  this  question  also,  and  went  back 
to  one  of  her  arguments. 

"  They  don't  keep  travelers  away  at  all,  even 
by  your  own  admission.  What  is  to  hinder 
hundreds  of  them  from  coming  here  to-d&y  and 
buying  season  tickets  in  order  to  get  in  to-mor 
row?" 

lie  had  the  benefit  of  a  most  quizzical  glance 
then  from  Marion's  shining  eyes  before  she  an 
swered. 

"  Oh,  well,  if  the  people  are  really  so  hunger 
ing  and  thirsting  for  the  gospel,  as  it  is  dis 
pensed  at  Chautauqua,  that  they  are  willing  to 


246  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

act  a  lie,  by  pretending  that  they  are  members 
who  have  been  and  are  to  be  in  regular  attendance, 
ami  then  are  willing  to  pay  two  dollars  and  a 
half  for  the  Sunday  meeting,  I  don't  know  but  I 
think  they  ought  to  be  allowed  to  creep  in. 
Dop'tyou?" 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

GETTING  KEADY  TO  LIVE. 

MID  the  laughter  that  followed  this  re 
tort  the  company  rose  up  from  the  table 
and  went  their  various  ways,  to  meet,  perhaps, 
again. 

*  "  How  on  earth  do  you  manage  to  keep  so 
thoroughly  posted  in  regard  to  Chantauqua  af 
fairs  ?  One  would  think  you  were  the  wife  of 
the  private  secretary.  I  shouldn't  have  known 
whether  the  gates  were  to  be  opened  or  closed 
to-morrow." 

This  from  Ruth  as  the  two  girls  paced  the 
long  piazza  while  waiting  for  the  carriage  which 
was  to  take  them  to  the  boat ;  for,  having  ex 
hausted  the  resources  of  Mayville  for  entertain 
ment,  they  were  abaut  to  return  to  Chautauqua. 

(247) 


248  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

Marion  laughed. 

"I'm  here  in  the  capacity  of  a  newspaper 
writer,  please  remember," she  answered  promptly, 
"and  what  I  don't  know  I  can  imagine,  like  the 
rest  of  that  brilliant  fraternity.  I  am  not  really 
positive  about  a  great  many  of  the  statements 
that  I  made,  except  on  the  general  principle  that 
these  people  belong  to  the  class  who  are  very 
much  given  to  doing  according  to  their  printed 
word.  It  says  on  the  circulars  that  the  gates 
will  be  closed  on  the  Sabbath,  and  I  dare  say 
they  will  be.  At  least,  we  have  a  right  to  as 
sume  such  to  be  the  case  until  it  is  proven 
false." 

"  What  class  of  people  do  you  mean  who  are 
given  to  doing  as  they  have  agreed  ?  Christian 
people,  do  you  refer  to  ?  " 

"  Well,  yes ;  the  sort  of  Christians  that  one 
meets  at  such  a  gathering  as  this.  As  a  rule, 
the  namby-pamby  Christians  stay  away  from 
such  places ;  or,  if  they  come,  they  float  off  to 
Saratoga  or  some  more  kindred  climate.  I  beg 
your  pardon,  Ruthie,  that  doesn't  mean  you,  you 
know,  because  you  are  not  one  of  any  sort." 

"Then  do  you   take   it  to  be  their  religion 


Getting  Ready  to  Live.  249 

which  inclines  you  to  trust  to  their  word,  with 
out  having  an  individual  acquaintance  with 
them  ?  " 

Marion  shrugged  her  shoulders. 

"  Oh, bother !"  she  said,  gayly,  "you  are  not 
turning  theologian,  or  police  detective  in  search 
of  suspicious  characters,  are  you  ?  I  never  pre 
tend  to  pry  into  my  notions  for  and  against  peo 
ple  and  things ;  if  I  was  betrayed  into  anything 
that  sounded  like  common  sense  I  beg  your 
pardon.  I  am  out  on  a  frolic,  and  mean  to  have 
it  if  there  is  any  such  thing." 

"Well,  before  you  go  back  into  absolute  non 
sense  let  me  ask  you  one  more  question.  Do 
you  really  feel  as  deeply  as  you  pretended  to 
that  man,  on  all  these  questions  of  the  Chau- 
tauqua  conscience  ?  I  mean,  is  it  a  vital  point 
in  your  estimation  whether  people  go  there  to 
church  on  Sunday  or  not  ?  " 

Marion  hesitated,  and  a  fine  glow  deepened  on 
her  face  as  she  said,  after  a  little,  speaking  with 
grave  dignity  : 

"  I  do  not  know  that  I  can  explain  myself  to 
you,  Ruth,  and  I  dare  say  that  I  seem  to  you 
like  a  bundle  of  contradictious  ;  but  it  is  a  real 


250  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

pleasure  to  me  to  come  in  contact  with  people 
who  have  earnest  faith  and  eager  enthusiasm 
over  anything,  and  principle  enough  to  stand  by 
their  views  through  evil  and  good  report.  In 
this  way,  and  to  a  great  degree,  this  meeting  is 
*  positive  delight  to  me,  though  I  know  person 
ally  as  little  about  the  feeling  from  which  they 
think  their  actions  take  rise  as  any  mortal  can. 
Does  that  answer  satisfy  you,  my  blessed  mother 
confessor  ?  or  are  you  more  muddled  than  ever 
over  what  I  do,  and  especially  over  what  I  do  not 
believe  ?  " 

"  If  I  believed  as  much  as  you  do  I  should 
look  further." 

lluth  said  this  with  emphasis  ;  and  there  was 
that  in  it  which,  despite  her  attempts  to  throw  it 
off,  set  Marion  to  thinking,  and  kept  her  wonder 
fully  quiet  during  their  return  trip. 

On  the  whole,  the  flight  to  Mayville  was  not 
viewed  entirely  in  the  light  of  a  success.  Ruth 
had  been  quiet  and  grave  for  some  time,  when 
she  suddenly  spoke  in  her  most  composed  and 
decided  voice : 

".I  shall  go  to  Saratoga  on  Monday,  whether 
any  one  else  will  or  not ;  I  shall  find  plentj  of 


Getting  Ready  to  Live.  251 

friends  to  welcome   me,   and  I   shall   take  the 
morning  train  from  here," 

But  she  didn't. 

Meantime  Flossy's  afternoon  had  been  an  un 
interrupted  satisfaction  to  her.  She  attended  the 
children's  meeting,  and  it  was  perfectly  amazing 
to  her  newly  awakened  brain  how  many  of  the 
stories,  used  to  point  truths  for  the  children, 
touched  home  to  her. 

Dr.  Huiibut,  of  Plainfield,  seemed  to  have 
especially  planned  his  address  for  the  purpose 
of  hitting  at  some  of  the  markedly  weak  points 
in  her  character,  though  no  doubt  the  good  man 
would  have  been  utterly  amazed  had  he  known 
her  thoughts. 

She  listened  and  laughed  with  the  rest  over 
the  story  of  the  poor  tailor  who  promised  a  coat 
to  a  customer  for  one,  two  and  three  weeks, 
heaping  up  his  promises  one  on  the  other  until 
he  had  a  perfect  pyramid  of  them,  only  to  top 
ple  about  his  ears.  She  heard  with  the  rest  the 
magnificent  voice  ring  out  the  solemn  conclu 
sion  : 

"  Children,  he  did  not  mean  to  lie.  He  did 
not  even  think  he  was  a  liar.  He  only  broke  his 
promises." 


252  Four  G-irls  at  Chautauqua. 

They  all  heard,  and  I  don't  know  how  man} 
shivered  over  it,  but  I  do  know  that  to  Flossy 
Shipley  it  seemed  as  if  some  one  had  struck  her 
an  actual  blow.  Was  it  possible  that  the  easy 
sentences,  the  easy  promises,  to  "  write,"  to 
"  come,"  to  "  bring  this,"  to  "  tell  that,"  made  so 
gracefully,  sounding  so  kindly,  costing  so  little 
because  forgotten  almost  as  soon  as  her  head  was 
turned  away,  actually  belonged  in  that  list  de 
scribed  by  the  ugly  word  "lie."  Flossy  had 
been  a  special  sinner  in  this  department  of  po 
lite  wickedness  because  it  just  accorded  with  her 
nature  ;  such  promises  were  so  easy  to  make,  and 
seemed  to  please  people,  and  were  so  easy  to 
forget.  Like  the  tailor,  she  hadn't  meant  to  be 
a  liar,  nor  dreamed  that  she  was  one. 

But  her  wide-open  ears  took  it  all  in,  and  her 
roused  brain  turned  the  thought  over  and  over, 
until,  be  it  known  to  you,  that  that  girl's  happy 
pastor,  when  he  receives  from  her  a  decided, 
"  Yes,  sir,  I  will  do  it,"  may  rest  assured  that 
unless  something  beyond  her  control  intervenes 
she  will  be  at  her  post. 

So  much  did  Dr.  Hurlbut  accomplish  that  af 
ternoon  without  ever  knowing  it.  There  were 


Getting  Ready  to  Live.  253 

many  things  done  that  afternoon,  I  suspect,  that 
only  the  light  of  the  judgement  day  will  reveal. 
Cher  the  stor}7"  of  the  two  workmen,  who  each 
resolved  to  stick  to  a  certain  effort  for  six 
months,  and  did  it,  the  one  earning  thereby  a 
patent  right  worth  thousands  of  dollars,  and  the 
other  teaching  a  little  dog  how  to  dance  to  the 
whistling  of  a  certain  tune,  Flossy  looked  unut 
terably  sober,  while  the  laughter  swelled  to  a 
perfect  roar  around  her.  It  was  hard  to  feel 
that  not  "six  months"  only,  but  a  dozen  }*ears 
of  intelligent  life,  were  gone  from  her,  and  she 
had  not  even  taught  a  dog  to  dance  a  jig  !  That 
was  the  very  way  she  put  it  in  her  humility; 
and  I  do  not  say  that  she  placed  it  too  low,  be 
cause  really  I  don't  know  that  Flossy  Shipley 
had  ever  had  even  so  settled  a  purpose  in  life  as 
that !  She  had  simply  fluttered  around  the  edge 
of  this  solemn  business  that  we  call  living. 

Bat  along  with  the  sober  thought  glowed  the 
earnest  purpose :  given  another  dozen  years  to 
my  young  lady's  life  and  they  will  bear  a  differ 
ent  record ;  and  whatever  they  bear,  Dr.  Ilurl- 
burt  will  be  in  a  sense  responsible  for,  though  he 
never  saw  her  and  probably  never  will.  Verily, 


254  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

this  living  is  a  complicated  bewildering  thing! 
Well  for  us  that  all  the  weight  of  the  responsi 
bility  is  not  ours  to  bear. 

There  was  still  another  story,  and  over  it 
Flossy 's  lips  parted,  and  her  eyes  glowed  with 
feeling.  That  wonderful  machine  that  the  most 
skillful  workmen  tried  in  vain  to  repair,  that 
was  useless  and  worthless,  until  the  name  of  the 
owner  was  found  on  it,  and  he  was  sent  for,  then 
indeed  it  found  the  master-hand,  the  only  one 
who  could  right  it ;  she  did  not  need  Dr.  Hurl- 
but's  glowing  application.  "So  He  who  made 
us,  and  engraved  his  name,  his  image,  on  our 
bodies,  can  alone  take  our  hearts  and  make 
them  right." 

Flossy  listened  to  this  and  the  sentences  that 
followed,  thrilling  her  heart  with  their  power 
and  beauty  —  thrilling  as  they  would  not  have 
done  one  week  ago,  for  did  she  not  know  by 
actual  experience  just  how  blessed  a  worker  the 
great  Maker  was?  Had  she  not  carried  her 
heart  to  him,  and  had  he  not  left  his  indelible 
impression  there?  Oh,  this  was  a  wonderful 
meeting  to  Flossy  —  one  that  she  will  never  for 
get —  one  that  many  others  will  have  reason  to 


G-etting  Ready  to  Live.  255 

remember,  because  of  the  way  in  which  she  list 
ened.  But  was  it  nob  strange,  the  way  in  which 
her  education  was  being  cared  for  ? 

After  tea  she  stood  at  the  entrance  of  the 
tent,  looking  out  for  the  girls  —  looking  out, 
also,  on  the  cool,  quiet  sunset  and  the  glory 
spread  everywhere,  for  there  had  been  sunshine 
that  day,  part  of  the  time,  and  there  was  a  clear 
sun  setting.  Under  her  arm  she  held  the  treas 
ure  which  she  had  in  the  morning  determined  to 
possess  —  a  good,  plain,  large-print  Bible,  not  at 
all  like  the  velvet-covered  one  that  lay  on  her 
toilet-stand  at  home,  but  such  as  the  needs  of 
Bible  students  at  Chautauqua  had  demanded, 
and  therefore  much  better  fitted  for  actual  ser 
vice  than  the  velvet. 

Among  the  many  passers-by  came  Mrs.  Srnythe. 
She  halted  before  Flossy. 

"  Good-evening.  I  thought  your  party  must 
have  left.  I  haven't  seen  you  since  Thursday. 
Haven't  you  been  fearfully  bored  ?  We  are  go 
ing  to  leave  on  Monday  morning  —  going  to 
Saratoga.  Don't  some  of  you  want  to  join  us  ? 

44 1  don't  know,"  Flossy  said,  thoughtfully 
mindful  of  Ruth  and  her  plan  that  had  not 


256  Four  G-irls  at  Chautauqua. 

worked.  "  It  is  possible  that  Miss  Erskine  may. 
Do  your  entire  party  go  ?  " 

"  Oh,  not  my  nephew,  of  course !  Nothing 
could  tear  him  away.  He  is  perfectly  charmed 
with  all  this  singing  and  praying  and  preaching, 
but  I  confess  it  is  too  much  of  a  good  thing  for 
rne.  I  am  not  intellectually  inclined,  I  like  the 
music  very  well,  and  some  of  the  addresses  arc 
fine  ;  but  there  is  such  a  thing  as  carrying  meet 
ings  to  excess." 

At  this  point  she  turned  quickly  at  the  sound 
of  a  firm  -step  behind  her,  and  greeted  a  young 
man. 

"  Speak  of  angels  and  you  hear  their  wings,  or 
the  squeak  of  their  boots,"  she  said.  "  We  were 
just  talking  about  }rou,  Evan.  My  nephew,  Mr. 
Roberts,  Miss  Shipley.  I  believe  you  have  never 
met  before." 

Had  they  not !  There  was  a  heightened  flush 
on  the  cheek  of  each  as  they  shook  hands.  It 
was  clear  that  each  recognized  the  other. 

"  Are  we  strangers  ?  "  he  asked,  with  a  bright- 
smile,  speaking  so  low  that  Mrs.  Smythe,  whose 
attention  had  already  wandered  from  them  to  a 
group  who  were  passing,  did  not  hear  the  words. 


G-etting  Ready  to  Live.  257 

"  On  tlie  contrary,  I  think  we  are  related,  though 
I  do  not  know  that  we  have  happened  to  hear 
each  other's  names  before." 

Flossy  understood  the  relationship  —  sons  and 
daughters  of  one  Father  —  for  she  knew  this  was 
the  }Toung  man  who  had  twice  questioned  her 
concerning  her  allegiance  to  that  Father.  Also, 
she  remembered  him  as  the  only  one  whom  she 
had  ever  heard  pray  for  her. 

Mrs.  Symthe  called  out  a  gay  good-evening  to 
them,  and  joined  a  party  of  friends,  and  Mr. 
Roberts  leaned  against  a  tree  and  prepared  to 
cultivate  the  acquaintance  of  his  newly-found 
relative. 

"  You  have  one  of  those  large,  sensible-look 
ing  Bibles,  I  see,"  he  said.  "  I  have  been  very 
much  tempted,  but  I  could  not  make  myself  feel 
that  I  really  needed  one." 

"  I  really  needed  mine,"  Flossy  said,  smiling. 
"I  left  my  Bible  at  home.  I  had  not  such  a 
thought  as  bringing  it  along.  I  feel  now  as  if  I 
had  a  treasure  that  I  didn't  know  how  to  use. 
It  is  quite  new  to  me.  I  don't  know  where  to 
read  first,  but  I  suppose  it  makes  no  difference." 

"  Indeed  it  does  make   great  difference/'  he 


258  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

said,  smiling1,  "  and  you  will  enjoy  finding  out 
Low  to  read  it.  Chautauqua  is  a  good  place  for 
such  a  study,  and  the  Bible  reading  this  evening 
is  an  excellent  place  to  commence.  Are  you 
going  ?  " 

"  Yes,  indeed  !  "  Flossy  said,  with  brightening 
eyes.  "  I  have  been  looking  forward  to  it  all 
day.  I  can't  think  what  a  Bible  reading  is.  Do 
they  just  read  verses  in  the  Bible?" 

"  Yes,"  he  said,  smiling.  "  It  is  just  Bible 
verses,  with  a  word  of  explanation  now  and  then 
and  a  little  singing.  Bat  the  Bible  verses  are 
something  remarkable,  as  you  will  see.  It  is 
nearly  time  for  service.  Are  you  ready  ?  Shall 
we  walk  down  and  secure  seats?  " 

So  they  went  down  together  in  the  early  twi 
light,  and  took  seats  under  the  trees  amid  the 
glowing  of  brilliant  lights  and  the  soft  sound  of 
music  coming  from  the  piano  on  the  stand. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

THE  SILENT  WITNESS. 

HAT  Bible  reading !  I  wish  I  could 
make  it  appear  to  you  as  it  did  to  Fossy 
Shipley.  Not  that  either,  because  I  trust  that 
the  sound  of  the  Bible  verses  is  not  so  utterly 
new  to  you  as  it  was  to  her  —  rather,  that  it 
might  sound  to  you  as  it  did  to  the  earnest-souled 
young  man  who  sat  beside  her,  taking  in  every 
word-  with  as  much  eagerness  as  if  some  of  the 
verses  had  not  been  his  dear  and  long-cherished 
friends ;  nay,  with  more  eagerness  on  that  ac 
count. 

Do  you  know  Dr.  Parsons,  of  Boston  ?     It  v>Tas 
he  who  conducted  that  reading,  and  his  theme 

was,  "  The  Coming  of  the  Lord." 

(250) 


260  Four  G-irls  at  Chautauqua. 

Let  me  give  you  just  a  few  of  the  group 
ings  as  he  called  them  forth  from  his  congregation 
under  the  trees,  and  which  he  called  "  the  Lord's 
own  testimonies  to  his  coming :" 

"  Watch  therefore,  for  ye  know  not  what  hour 
your  Lord  doth  come."  "  Therefore,  be  ye  also 
ready  ;  for  in  such  an  hour  as  ye  think  not  the 
Son  of  man  cometh."  "  Watch  therefore,  for  ye 
know  neither  the  day  nor  the  hour  wherein  the 
Son  of  man  cometh."  "Take  ye  heed,  watch 
and  pray:  for  ye  know  not  when  the  time  is." 

Four  solemn  warnings  from  the  Head  of  the 
vineyard.  They  reached  to  Flossy's  very  soul, 
and  she  had  that  old  well-known  thrill  of  feeling 
that  almost  every  Christian  has  some  time  ex 
perienced. 

"  If /had  only  been  there  ;  if  He  had  spoken 
such  words  to  me,  I  could  never,  never  have  for 
gotten,  or  been  neglectful.  If  I  could  only  have 
heard  Him  speak  !  "  And  as  if  in  answer  to  this 
longing  cry  Dr.  Parsons  himself  read  the  next 
solemn  sentence,  read  it  in  such  a  way  that  it 
almost  seemed  as  if  this  might  be  the  sacred  gar 
den,  and  Himself  standing  among  the  olive-trees 
speaking  even  to  her : 


The  Silent   Witness.  261 

"And  what  I  say  unto  you  I  say  unto  all, 
Watch."  Here,  then,  was  her  direction  from  His 
own  lips.  Though  centuries  had  passed  since 
He  spoke  them  they  echoed  down  to  her.  She 
was  not  overwhelmed ;  she  was  not  crushed  by 
the  new  and  solemn  sense  of  her  calling  that 
flowed  over  her.  The  Lord  himself  was  there 
in  every  deed,  and  whispered  in  her  ear,  "  It  is 
I,  be  not  afraid."  And  her  heart  responded  sol 
emnly,  "  A}re,  Lord,  I  feel  thy  presence  ;  I  have 
been  sleeping,  but  I  am  awake,  and  from  hence 
forth  I  will  watch." 

That  Bible  reading  was  like  a  whole  week  of 
theological  study  to  Floss}^.  It  was  not  that  she 
learned  simply  about  the  blessed  assurance,  the 
weight  of  testimony  amounting  to  an  absolute 
certaint}r,  concerning  the  coming  of  the  Lord. 
But  there  were  so  many  truths  growing  out 
from  that,  so  many  incentives  to  be  up  and  doing  ; 
for  she  found  before  the  reading  closed  that  one 
must  not  only  watch,  but  in  the  watching  work  ; 
and  there  were  so  many  reasons  why  she  should, 
and  so  many  hints  as  to  the  way  and  the  time. 
Then  there  was,  also,  the  most  blessed  discovery 
that  the  Bible  was  not  a  book  to  treat  like  an 


262  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

arithmetic.  That  one  must  read  through  the 
Book  of  Genesis,  and  then  go  on  to  Exodus,  a 
chapter  to-day,  two  chapters  to-morrow,  and  per 
haps  some  da}rs,  when  one  was  not  in  too  great 
a  hurry  and  could  read  very  fast,  take  half  a 
dozen  chapters,  and  so  get  through  it.  But  she 
learned  that  there  were  little  connecting  links  of 
sweetness  all  the  way  through  the  book ;  that 
she  had  a  right  to  look  over  in  Revelation  for 
an  explanation  of  something  that  was  stated  in 
Deuteronomy.  She  did  not  learn  all  this,  either, 
at  this  one  time ;  but  she  got  a  vivid  hint  of  it, 
strong  enough  to  keep  her  hunting  and  pulling 
at  the  lovely  golden  thread  of  the  Bible  for  long 
years  to  come. 

There  were  special  points  about  the  closing 
verses  that  throbbed  in  her  heart,  and  awakened 
purposes  that  never  slept  again.  It  was  the  gen 
tleman  who  sat  beside  her  who  read  the  solemn 
words  of  the  verse  : 

"  But  the  day  of  the  Lord  will  come  as  a  thief 
in  the  night ;  in  which  the  heavens  shall  pass 
away  with  a  great  noise,  and  the  elements  shall 
melt  with  fervent  heat,  the  earth  also  and  the 
works  that  are  therein  shall  be  burned  up.  See- 


The  Silent   Witness.  263 

ing  then  that  all  these  things  shall  be  dissolved, 
what  manner  of  persons  ought  ye  to  be  in  all 
holy  conversation  and  godliness  ?  " 

His  voice  was  very  earnest,  and  his  face  had 
an  eager  look  of  solemn  joy. 

From  it  she  felt  the  truth  that  while  the  words 
w^hich  he  had  been  reading  wrere  full  of  solem 
nity,  and  while  he  felt  the  sense  of  responsibility, 
there  was  also  that  in  them  which  filled  his  heart 
with  great  joy,  for  when  that  time  should  come 
would  not  he  be  with  his  Lord  ? 

Again,  when  a  little  later  he  gave  the  closing 
verses  of  this  wonderful  lesson,  reading  them 
from  her  Bible,  because  in  the  dimness  the  print 
was  larger  and  clearer  than  his  own,  they  made 
the  conclusion  of  the  whole  matter : 

"  Ye  are  the  children  of  light,  and  the  children 
of  the  day;  we  are  not  of  the  night,  nor  of  tho 
darkness.  Therefore  let  us  not  sleep  as  do  oth 
ers,  but  let  us  watch  and  be  sober." 

He  marked  it  with  his  pencil  as  he  finished 
reading,  and  as  he  returned  the  book  to  her 
keeping  he  said  with  a  smile : 

"We  will,  shall  \ve  not?" 

And  it  felt  to  Flossy  like  a  convenant,  wit- 


Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

nessed  by  the  Lord  himself.  But  Dr.  Parsons, 
you  know,  knew  nothing  of  all  this.  Chautau 
qua  was  the  place  for  sowing  the  seed ;  they 
could  only  hope  that  the  Lord  of  the  vineyard 
was  looking  on  and  watching  over  the  coming 
harvest;  it  was  not  for  their  eyes  to  see  the 
fruits. 

Sunday  morning  at  Chautauqua !  None  of  all 
the  many  hundreds  who  spent  the  day  within 
the  shadow  of  that  sweet  and  leafy  place  have 
surely  forgotten  how  the  quaint  and  quiet  beauty 
of  the  place  and  its  surroundings  fell  upon  them  ; 
they  know  just  how  the  birds  sang  among  those 
tall  old  trees;  they  know  just  how  still  and  blue 
and  clear  the  lake  looked  as  they  caught  glimpes 
of  ifc  through  the  quivering  green  of  myriad 
leaves;  they  know  just  how  clearly  the  Chau 
tauqua  bells  cut  the  air  and  called  to  the  wor 
ship.  It  needs  not  even  these  few  words  to  re 
call  the  place  in  its  beauty  to  the  hearts  of  those 
who  worshiped  there  that  day ;  and  for  you  who 
did  not  see  it  nor  feel  its  power  there  is  no  use 
to  try  to  describe  Chautauqua.  Only  this,  it  is 
a  place  to  love  and  look  back  to  with  a  sort  of 
sweet  and  tender  longing  all  your  lives. 


The  Silent   Witness.  265 

Our  girls  felt  somewhat  of  the  sacredness  of 
the  place  ;  at  least  they  went  around  with  a  more 
decided  feeling  that  it  was  Sunday  than  they 
had  ever  realized  before.  Three  of  them  did. 

To  Flossy  this  day  was  like  the  revelation  of 
a  new  heaven  and  a  new  earth.  Her  first  Sun 
day  in  Christ ! 

There  was  no  sunshine,  neither  was  there  rain. 
Just  a  hush  of  all  things,  and  sweetness  every 
where. 

After  breakfast  Ruth  and  Marion  lolled  on 
their  cots  and  studied  the  programme,  while  the 
other  two  made  hasty  toilets,  and  announced 
their  intention  of  going  to  Sunday-school. 

"What  in  the  name  of  sense  takes  you?" 
queried  Marion,  rising  on  one  elbow,  the  better 
to  view  this  strange  phenomena. 

"  Why  I  have  a  mission,"  Eurie  said.  "About 
three  thousand  people  have  been  talking  all  this 
week  abo*ut  teaching  a  fe\v  Bible  verses  to  some 
children  to-daj*,  and  I  am  going  to  find  out  what 
they  are,  and  what  is  so  wonderful  about  them. 
Besides,  I  was  taken,  for  a  being  named  Miss 
Rider,  and  on  inquiry  I  find  her  to  be  what  they 
call  an  infant-class  teacher,  so  I  am  going  to  hunt 


2G6  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

her  up  and  see  if  we  look  alike  and  are  affin 
ities." 

Flossy  chose  to  make  no  answer  at  all,  and 
presently  the  two  departed  together  to  attend 
their  first  Sabbath-school  since  they  were  known 
as  children.  As  they  passed  a  certain  tent  Eu- 
rie's  ready  ears  gained  information  from  other 
passers-by : 

"  This  is  where  the  little  children  are ;  Miss 
Rider  is  going  to  teach  them." 

Eurie  halted. 

"  I'm  going  in  here,"  she  said,  decidedly,  to 
Flossy.  "  That  is  the  very  lady  I  am  in  search 
of."  And  seeing  Flossy  hesitate,  she  added: 
"  Oh,  you  may  go  on,  it  is  just  as  well  to  divide 
our  forces  ;  we  may  each  have  some  wonderful 
adventure.  You  go  your  way  and  I  will  go 
mine,  and  we'll  see  what  will  come  of  it." 

The  tent  was  full  apparently ;  but  that  spirit 
which  was  rife  at  Chautauqua,  aifd  which 
prompted  everybody  to  try  to  look  out  a  little 
for  the  comfort  of  everybody  else,  made  a  seat 
full  of  ladies  crowd  a  little  and  make  room  for 
her.  Rows  and  rows  of  little  people  with  smiling 
faces  and  shining  eyes !  It  was  a  pretty  sight. 


The  Silent  Witness.  267 

Eurie  gave  eager  attention  to  the  lady  who  was 
talking  to  them,  anji  laughed  a  little  to  herself 
over  the  dissimilarity  of  their  appearance. 

"  Hair  and  eyes  and  height,  and  everything 
else,  totally  unlike  me  I  "  she  said.  "  She  is  older 
than  I,  too,  ever  so  much.  She  doesn't  look  as 
I  thought  Miss  Rider  would." 

But  what  she  was  saying  proved  to  be  very 
interesting,  not  only  to  the  little  people,  but  to 
Eurie.  She  listened  eagerly.  It  was  important 
to  discover  what  had  been  so  stirring  the  Sun- 
da}'-school  world  all  the  week.  She  was  not 
left  in  doubt ;  the  story  was  plainly,  clearly,  fas 
cinatingly  told ;  it  was  that  tender  one  of  the 
sick  man  so  long  waiting,  waiting  to  be  helped 
into  the  pool ;  disappointed  year  after  year,  until 
one  blessed  day  Jesus  came  that  way  and  asked 
one  simple  question,  and  received  an  eager  an 
swer,  and  gave  one  brief  command,  and,  lo  !  the 
work  was  done  !  The  long,  long  years  of  pain 
and  trial  were  over !  Do  you  think  this  seemed 
like  a  wonderful  story  to  Eurie  ?  Do  you  think 
her  cheeks  glowed  with  joy  over  the  thought  of 
the  great  love  and  the  great  power  of  Jesus? 

Alas,  alas !  to  her  there  was  no  beauty  in  him. 


268  Four  Grirls  at  Chautauqua. 

This  simple  tender  story  did  not  move  her  as  the 
commonplace  account  of  a  common  sickness  and 
common  recovery  given  in  a  village  paper  would 
have  done.  The  very  most  that  she  thought  of 
it  was  this :  "  That  Miss  Eider  has  a  good  deal 
of  dramatic  power.  How  well  she  tells  the 
story !  But  dear  me  !  how  stupid  it  must  be. 
What  is  the  use  of  taking  so  much  trouble  for 
these  little  midgets?  They  don't  understand 
the  story,  and  of  what  use  would  it  be  to  them 
if  they  did?  Something  that  happened  to  some 
body  hundreds  of  years  ago." 

But  now  her  attention  was  arrested  by  the 
sound  of  a  very  loud  whisper  just  behind  her, 
given  in  a  childish  voice.  "Miss  Rider,  Miss 
Rider,"  the  child  was  saying,  and  emphasizing 
her  whisper  by  a  pull  at  a  lady's  dress.  Eurie 
turned  quickly ;  the  dress  belonged  to  a  young, 
fair  girl,  with  fresh  glowing  face  and  large 
bright  eyes,  that  shone  now  with  feeling  as  she 
listened  eagerly  to  this  story,  and  to  the  com 
ments  of  the  children  concerning  it.  Then  she 
in  turn  whispered  to  the  lady  nearest  her: 
"  Is  it  Miss  Rider  who  is  teaching  ?  " 
"No,  it  is  Mrs.  Clark,  of  Newark.  That  is 
Miss  Rider  leaning  against  a  post." 


The  Silent   Witness.  269 

Then  Eurie  looked  back  to  her.     "She  is  no 
older  than  I,"  she  murmured ;  "  indeed  not  so 
old,  I  should  think.     Her  hair  must  be  exactly 
the  color  of  mine,  and  we  are  about  the  same 
height.      I  wonder  if  we  do   look  in  the  least 
alike  ?    What  do  I  care  !  "     Yet  still  she  looked  ; 
the  bright  face  fascinated  her.     The  little  child 
had  won  the  lacty's  attention ;  and  the  lips  and 
yes,  and  indeed  the  whole  face,  were  vivid  with 
nimation  as  she  bent  low  and  answered  some 
roubled  question,  appealing  to  the  diagram  on 
he  board,  and  making  clear  her  answer  by  rapid 
estures   with   her  fingers.      The    lady   beside 
urie  volunteered  some  more  information. 
"  Miss  Rider  was  to  have  taught  this  class,  I 
card.     I  wonder  why  she  didn't  ?  " 
"  I    don't   know,"    Eurie    answered,   briefly, 
en  she  looked   back  at  her  again.     "She  is 
jealous,"  she  said  to  herself.     "  She  was  to  have 
,ught   this   class    this   morning,   and   by  some 
lundering  she  was  left  out,  and  she  is  disgusted. 
She  will  say  that  such  teaching  as  this  amounts 
nothing ;  she  could  have  done  it  five  times  as 
veil :  or,  if  she  doesn't  say  that  last,  she   will 
-hink  it  and  act  it.     I   have   no  doubt   these 


270  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

rival  teachers  cordially  hate  each  other,  like  pol 
iticians." 

Nevertheless  that  fresh   young  face,  with  its 
glow  of  feeling,  fascinated  her.     She  kept  look 
ing  at  her;  she  gave  no  more  attention  to  the 
lesson.     What  was  it,  after  all,  but  an  old  stor 
that  had  nothing  to  do  with  her ;  the  fact  that  it* 
was  taken  from  the  Bible  was  proof  enough  of  li 
that.     But  she  watched  Miss  Rider.     The  ses-J 
sion  closed  and  that  lady  pressed  forward  to  as4 
sist  in  giving  out  papers.     The    crowd  pushed1 
the  willing  Eurie  nearer  to  her,  so  near  that  shell 
could  catch  the  sentence  that  she  was  eagerly4! 
saying  to  the  lady  near  her. 

"Isn't  Mrs.  Clark  delightful?     It  was  such  aj 
beautiful  lesson  this  morning.     I  think  it  is  suchi; 
a  treat  and  such  a  privilege  to  be  allowed  tof 
listen  to  her.     Yes,  darling,"  this  last  to  another  j 
little  one  claiming  a  word,  "  of  course  Jesus  caiiji 
hear  you  now,  just  as  well  as  though  you  stood 
here.     He  often  says  to  people,  '  Wilt  thou  be 
made  whole  ? '     He  has  said  so  to  you  this  morn- 

B>g." 

Eurie   turned  away  quickly.     She   had  had 
her  lesson.     It  wasn't  from  the  Bible,  nor  yei 


The  Silent   Witness. 


271 


did  she  find  it  in  those  hundred  little  faces  so 
eager  to  know  the  story  in  all  its  details.  Jt 
was  just  in  that  young  face  not  so  old  as  hers,  so 
bright,  so  strong,  so  thoroughly  alert,  and  so 
thoroughly  enlisted  in  this  matter.  The  vivid 
contrast  between  that  life  and  hers  struck  Eurie 
with  the  force  of  a  new  revelation. 

She  went  to  the  general  service  under  the 
trees ;  she  heard  a  sermon  from  Dr.  Pierce,  so 
full  of  power  and  eloquence  that  to  many  who 
heard  it  there  came  new  resolves,  new  purposes, 
new  plans.  I  beg  her  pardon,  she  did  not  listen ; 
she  simply  occupied  a  seat  and  looked  as  though 
she  was  a  listener. 

But  the  truth  was,  she  had  not  learned  yet  to 
listen  to  sermons.  The  very  fact  that  it  was  a 
sermon  made  it  clear  to  her  mind  that  there  was 
to  be  nothing  in  it  for  her ;  this  had  been  her  ed 
ucation.  In  reality,  during  that  hour  of  worship 
she  was  engaged  in  watching  the  changeful  play 
of  expression  on  Miss  Rider's  face,  as  her  eyes 
brightened  and  glowed  with  enthusiasm  or  trem 
bled  with  tears,  according  as  the  preacher's 
words  roused  or  subdued  her. 

Well,  Eurie  had  her  lesson.     It  was  not  from 


272  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

the  Bible,  it  was  not  from  the  preacher's  lips, 
except  incidentally,  but  it  was  from  a  living 
epistle.  "  Ye  shall  be  witnesses  of  me,"  was  the 
promise  of  Christ  in  the  long  ago,  just  before 
the  cloud  received  him  out  of  sight.  Is  not  that 
promise  verified  to  us  often  and  often  when  we 
know  it  not  ? 

Miss  Rider  had  no  means  of  knowing  as  she 
sat  a  listener  that  Sabbath  morning  that  she  was 
witnessing  for  Christ.  But  she  was  just  as 
surely  speaking  for  him  as  though  she  had  stood 
up  amid  that  throng  and  said :  "  I  love  Jesus." 
"  Ye  are  my  witnesses,  saith  the  Lord."  And 
the  poet  has  said :  "  They  also  serve  who  only 
stand  and  wait."  Blessed  are  those  in  whom 
the  waiting  and  the  service  go  together. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

AN  OLD   STORY. 


MEANTIME  Flossy,  deserted  by  her  com 
panion,  made  her  way  somewhat  timidly 
down  to  the  stand,  amazed  by  the  great  congre 
gation  of  people  who  had  formed  themselves  into 
a  Sunday-school.  With  all  their  haste  the  girls 
had  gotten  a  very  late  start.  The  opening  exer 
cises  were  all  over,  and  the  numerous  teachers 
were  turning  to  their  work.  Strangely  enough, 
the  first  person  whom  Flossy 's  eye  took  in  dis 
tinctly  enough  for  recognition  was  Mr.  Roberts. 
lie  had  recognized  her,  also,  and  was  coming 
toward  her. 

"  How   do    you  do   this  morning  ? "  he  said, 
holding  out  his  hand.     "  Do  you  know  I  have  a 

mission  for  you  ?     There  are  two  boys  wrho  seem 

(273) 


274  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

to  belong  to  nobody,  and  to  have  nothing  in 
common  with  this  gathering,  except  curiosity. 
The  superintendent  has  twice  tried  to  charm 
them  in,  but  without  success  —  they  will  come 
no  further  than  that  tree.  I  think  they  have 
slipped  in  from  the  village,  probably  in  a  most 
unorthodox  fashion,  and  what  I  am  coming  at  is, 
will  you  go  out  under  the  tree  to  them  and  be 
guile  them  into  attending  a  Sabbath-school  for 
once  in  their  lives  ?  They  look  to  me  as  though 
it  was  probably  a  rare  occurrence." 

Now  you  are  not  to  suppose  that  this  invita 
tion  came  to  Flossy  with  the  same  sound  that  it 
would  have  had  to  you,  if  Mr.  Roberts  had  come 
to  you  that  Sabbath  morning  and  asked  }TOU  to 
tell  those  two  boys  a  Bible  story.  It  is  some 
thing  that  you  have  probably  been  doing  a  good 
deal  of,  all  your  grown-up  life,  and  two  boys  at 
Chautauqua  are  no  more  to  }*ou  than  two  boys 
anywhere  else,  except  that  there  is  a  delightful 
sensation  connected  with  having  a  class-room 
out  in  the  open  air.  But  imagine  yourself  sud 
denly  confronted  by  Dr.  Vincent,  and  asked  if 
you  would  be  so  kind  as  to  step  on  the  platform 
and  preach  to  five  thousand  people,  from  a  text 


An  Old  Story.  275 

that  he  would  select  for  you  I  Now  you  have 
something  of  an  idea  as  to  how  this  request  felt 
to  Flossy.  A  rare  glow  spread  all  over  her  face, 
and  she  looked  up  at  her  questioner  with  eyes 
that  were  quivering  in  tears. 

"  You  do  not  know  what  you  are  saying,"  she 
said,  in  low  and  trembling  voice.  "  I  have  not 
been  to  a  Sabbath -school  in  seven  years,  and  I 
never  taught  anybody  anything  in  my  life." 

It  was  true  that  he  did  not  know.  It  seemed 
to  him  such  a  very  little  thing  that  he  had  asked. 
However,  he  spoke  gently  enough  as  one  who 
was  courteous,  even  when  he  could  not  quite 
comprehend. 

"  Then  is  not  to-day  a  good  time  to  commence  ? 
You  will  surely  never  have  a  better  opportu 
nity." 

But  she  shook  her  head,  and  turned  quite 
away  from  him,  -walking  down  among  the  trees 
where  no  people  were.  Her  joy  was  all  gone, 
and  her  pleasant  time.  She  had  meant  to  go  to 
Sabbath-school;  to  sit  down  quietly  in  some 
body's  class  and  learn,  oh  I  a  very  great  deal, 
during  the  next  hour.  Now  she  was  all  stirred 
up,  and  and  could  not  go  anywhere. 


276  Four  Grirls  at  Chautauqua. 

As  for  Mr.  Roberts,  he  went  back  to  the  large 
class  who  were  waiting  for  him.  And  those 
two  boys  hovered  around  the  edge  of  that  feast 
like  hungry  creatures  who  yet  had  never  learned 
to  come  to  the  table  and  take  their  places. 
Flossy  looked  at  them ;  at  first  indignantly,  as 
at  miserable  beings  who  had  spoiled  her  pleas 
ure  ;  then  she  became  fascinated  by  their  bright, 
dirty  faces  and  roguish  ways.  She  edged  a 
little  nearer  to  them.  Boys  she  was  afraid  of; 
she  knew  nothing  about  them.  Had  they  been 
a  little  older,  and  been  dressed  well,  and  been 
of  the  stamp  of  boys  who  knew  how  to  bring 
her  handkerchief  to  her  when  she  dropped  it, 
she  would  have  known  what  to  say  to  them. 
But  boys  who  were  not  more  than  twelve  or 
fourteen,  and  who  were  both  ragged  and  dirt}', 
were  new  phases  of  life  to  her. 

"  Why  don't  you  go  to  Sunday-school  ?  "  she 
questioned  at  last,  with  a  timid  air.  She  could 
at  least  ask  that.  They  were  not  the  least 
timid  as  to  answering ;  the  older  and  the  dirtier 
of  the  two  turned  his  roguish  eyes  on  her  and 
surveyed  her  from  head  to  foot  before  he  said : 

"  Why  don't  you  ?  " 


An  Old  Story. 


277 


Flossy  was  unprepared  for  this  question,  but 
she  answered  quickly  and  truthfully : 

"  Because  I  am  afraid  to  go." 

Both  boys  stared,  and  then  laughed,  and  the 
other  younger  one  said: 

"  So  be  we." 

"  I  suppose  we  are  both  very  silly,"  Flossy 
said.  "But  I  have  not  been  to  Sunday-school 
for  so  long  that  I  have  forgotten  all  about  it. 
Let's  have  one  of  our  own  that  we  are  not  afraid 
to  go  to." 

And  she  sat  bravely  down  on  the  stump  at 
her  feet;  her  niood  had  changed  very  suddenly; 
only  yesterday  she  had  read  a  verse  in  that 
Bible,  and  it  thrilled  her  then,  and  caine  to  hei 
now: 

"  The  man  departed  and  told  the  Jews  that  it 
was  Jesus  who  had  made  him  whole." 

Suppose  she  were  the  man,  and  these  were  the 
Jews,  could  she  not  say  to  them,  "He  has  made 
me  whole"?  She  could  tell  them  about  that 
pool,  and  about  the  sick  man.  It  wouldn't  be 
teaching  in  Sunday-school,  but  it  would  be  do 
ing  the  best  thing  that  she  could. 

It  suddenly  occurred  to  her  to  wonder  where 


278  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

the  lesson  was  that  was  being  taught  this  morn 
ing,  and  she  consulted  the  lesson  leaf  that  Mr. 
Roberts  had  left  in  her  hand.  The  glow  on  her 
face  deepened  and  spread  as  she  recognized  the 
very  story  which  had  so  filled  her  heart  the  day 
before  !  What  if  the  great  Physician  had  actu 
ally  selected  her  to  tell  of  that  miracle  of  healing 
to  these  two  neglected  ones !  Surely  they  were 
not  so  formidable  as  the  Jews  !  But  how  in  the 
world  to  begin  was  a  bewilderment.  Clearly 
she  must  decide  at  once  if  she  was  to  have  any 
class,  for  her  two  boys  began  to  look  about 
them,  and  show  signs  of  flight. 

"  Did  you  ever  hear  about  a  wonderful  spring 
that  used  to  cure  people  ?  " 

"Lots  of  'em.  I  used  to  live  right  by  one 
that  cured  the  rheumatiz." 

"  But  this  one  would  cure  other  things,  only 
it  wouldn't  cure  people  all  the  time.  There  was 
just  one  time  in  the  year  when  it  would  do  it ; 
and  then  the  one  that  got  in  first  was  the  only 
one  cured." 

Her  listeners  looked  skeptical. 

"  What  was  that  for  ?  "  queried  the  bolder  of 
the  two.  "  Why  didn't  it  cure  but  one  ?  " 


blic  must  decide  ut  once."  —  1'a 


An  Old  Story.  279 

"I  don't  know,"  Flossy  said.  "There  are 
ever  so  many  things  that  I  know  that  I  can't  tell 
why  they  are  so.  For  instance,  I  don't  know 
why  that  spring  you  have  been  telling  me  about 
cures  the  rheumatism,  but  I  know  it  does,  for 
you  told  me  so." 

"No  more  do  I,"  the  boy  said,  promptly,  hav 
ing  in  his  heart  a  rising  respect  for  the  young 
teacher  and  her  story." 

Then  this  ne\v  beginner,  with  the  air  of  a  di 
plomatist,  told  all  the  details  of  this  wonderful 
cure,  without  once  mentioning  the  name  of  either 
person  or  place.  An  innate  sense  of  the  human 
heart  told  her  that  "  Jerusalem  "  and  "  Jesus  " 
were  both  probably  connected  in  the  minds  of 
these  two  with  the  Bible,  and  their  appearance 
told  her  that  they  were  likely  to  be  skeptical  as 
to  the  interest  of  Bible  stories.  But,  like  all  ig 
norant  persons,  there  was  a  credulous  side  to 
their  nature.  It  is  surprising  what  marvelous 
stories  people  are  prepared  to  receive  and  credit, 
provided  only  that  they  do  not  come  from  the 
Bible,  with  a  "  Thus  suith  the  Lord  "  to  vouch 
for  them.  Then,  indeed,  they  are  apt  to  become 
"unreasonable"  and  "improbable.''  Presently 


280  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

her  boys  volunteered  some  remarks  and  asked 
some  questions. 

"  Jolly !  that  fellow  must  Lave  felt  good :  I 
guess  he  wanted  to  run  all  around  the  country 
and  tell  about  it.  Where  was  this  spring,  and 
what  was  the  man's  name  that  cured  him  ?  " 

The  other  chimed  in :  "  Yes,  and  how  did  he 
do  it?  That's  what  I'm  after.  And  is  he  dead? 
'cause  I  don't  hear  of  no  such  cures  now-days." 

Then  was  Flossy  tremulous  of  heart.  She 
had  become  eagerly  interested  in  her  story  and 
her  boys.  Would  the  charm  that  she  had 
woven  be  broken  the  moment  they  knew  the 
story's  origin?  But  of  course  she  must  tell 
them,  for  what  good  else  would  the  story  do  ? 

"  He  is  dead,"  she  said,  slowly,  answering  the 
last  question  first.  "  That  is,  he  is  what  you  call 
dead.  But,  of  course,  you  know  as  well  as  I  do 
that  that  doesn't  mean  what  it  seems  to  ;  it 
means  simply  that  he  doesn't  live  in  the  same 
place  that  he  once  did.  He  went  to  heaven  to 
live  ever  so  many  years  ago." 

She  waited  to  feel  the  effect  of  this  announce 
ment.  The  boys  were  silent  and  grave.  They 
hud  evidently  heard  of  heaven,  and  had  some 


An  Old  Story.  281 

measure  of  respect  for  the  name.  The  new- 
teacher  did  not  know  what  to  say  next.  The 
boys  helped  her.  The  younger  one  drew  a 
heavy  sigh. 

"  Well,  all  I've  got  to  say  is,  I  wish  he  was 
alive  now,"  he  said,  in  a  regretful  tone,  "  'cause 
my  mother  has  been  sick  longer  than  thirty-eight 
years ;  she  has  been  sick  about  all  her  life,  and 
she  is  real  bad  now,  so  she  can't  walk  at  all.  I 
s'pose  he  could  cure  her  if  he  was  here." 

"I  suppose  he  could  cure  her  now."  Flossy 
said  this  slowly,  reverently,  looking  earnestly  at 
the  boy,  hoping  to  convey  to  him  a  sense  of  her 
meaning.  He  looked  utterly  puzzled.  Light 
began  to  dawn  on  the  face  of  the  older  boy. 

"  She's  been  tellin'  us  one  of  them  Bible  sto 
ries,"  he  said,  speaking  not  to  Flossy,  but  to  his 
companion,  and  assuming  an  injured  air,  as  if  a 
wrong  had  been  done  them. 

Flossy  spoke  quickly : 

"  Of  course  I  have.  I  thought  you  wanted  to 
hear  something  that  really  happened,  and  not  a 
made-up  story."  This  seemed  to  b'e  an  appeal 
to  their  dignity,  and  they  eyed  her  reflectively. 

"  How  do  you  know  it  happened  ?  "  ventured 
the  younger  one. 


282  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

Flossy  gave  a  rapid  and  animated  answer. 

"  There  are  about  a  hundred  reasons  why  I 
know  it ;  it  would  take  me  all  day  to  tell  you 
half  of  them.  But  one  is,  that  I  read  it  in  a 
book  which  good  men  who  know  a  great  deal, 
and  who  have  been  studying  all  their  lives  to 
find  out  about  it,  say  they  know  is  true  ;  and  I 
believe  what  they  tell  me  about  Washington  and 
Lincoln  and  other  men  whom  I  never  saw,  so  I 
ought  to  believe  them  when  they  tell  me  about 
this  man." 

"  But  there's  one  thing  you  don't  know.  You 
don't  know  that  he  can  cure  folks  now,  and  he 
don't  do  it.  This  was  spoken  with  a  quiet  posi- 
tiveness,  and  with  the  air  that  said,  "  That  can't 
be  disputed,  and  you  know  it  can't." 

Flossy  hesitated  just  a  moment;  the  glow  on 
her  face  deepened  and  spread.  Then  she  an 
swered  in  much  the  same  tone  that  the  boy  had 
used: 

"  I  know  he  can,  and  I  have  good  reason  for 
knowing.  I'll  tell  you  a  secret;  you  are  the 
very  first  persons  I  have  told  about  it,  but  he 
has  cured  me.  I  have  been  sick  all  my  life  j 
when  I  came  here  to  Chautauqua  I  was  sick.  I 


An  Old  Story.  283 

could  not  do  anything  that  I  was  made  to  do, 
and  I  kept  doing  things  all  the  time  that  were 
not  meant  for  me  to  do,  but  he  has  cured  me." 

The  boys  looked  at  her  in  absolute  incredu 
lous  wonder. 

"  Was  you  sick  in  bed  when  you  came  ? " 
ventured  one  of  them  at  last. 

"No;  it  is  not  that  kind  of  sickness  that  I 
mean.  That  is  when  the  body  is  sick,  the  body 
that  when  the  soul  goes  away  looks  like  nothing 
but  marble,  can  not  move,  nor  feel,  nor  speak ; 
that  isn't  of  much  consequence,  you  know,  be 
cause  we  are  sure  that  the  soul  will  go  away 
from  it  after  awhile.  It  is  this  soul  of  mine  that 
is  going  to  live  forever  that  was  cured." 

"How  do  you  know  it  was?"  came  again 
from  these  wondering  bo}rs.  Flossy  smiled  a 
rare,  bright  smile  that  charmed  them. 

"  If  yours  had  been  cured  you  would  not  ask 
me  that  question,"  she  said ;  "  }*ou  would  know 
how  I  know  it.  But  I  can't  tell  you  how  it  is : 
don't  you  know  there  are  some  things  that  you 
are  sure  of  that  you  can't  explain?  You  are 
sure  you  can  think,  aren't. you  ?  but  how  would 
you  set  to  work  to  explain  to  me  that  you  are 


284  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

sure  ?  The  only  way  that  you  can  know  how  is 
by  going  to  this  doctor  and  getting  cured  ;  then 
you  will  understand." 

"I'd  like  him  if  he  would  cure  folks'  bodies" 
began  the  boy  who  had  a  sick  mother,  speaking 
in  a  doubtful,  somewhat  dissatisfied  tone 

'.'He  does,"  Flossy  said,  quickly.  "Don't 
people's  bodies  get  well  sometimes?  and  who 
can  cure  bodies  except  the  one  who  made  them  ? 
If  you  want  your  mother  cured  you  ought  to  try 
him.  If  she  is  to  be  made  well  you  may  be  sure 
that  he  can  do  it ;  but  why  should  he  so  long  as 
you  do  not  care  enough  about  it  to  ask  him  ?  " 

There  was  a  rush  and  a  bustle  among  the . 
crowds  in  the  distance.  Sunday-school  session 
was  over,  and  the  great  company  were  moving 
for  seats  for  the  morning  service.  The  boys 
took  the  alarm  and  fled,  each  glancing  back  to 
nod  and  smile  at  the  bright  apparition  who  had 
told  them  a  story.  Flossy  picked  up  her  Bible  ; 
she  had  not  needed  to  use  it  during  this  talk. 
The  story  of  Bethesda  had  burned  itself  so  into 
her  heart  with  that  morning  reading  that  she 
had  no  need  to  look  at  it  again.  She  gave  a 
thoughtful  little  sigh. 


An   Old  Story.  285 

"I  don't  know  about  that  being  teaching," 
she  said  within  her  heart,  "  but  I  certainly  told 
them  about  Jesus,  and  I  told  them  it  was  Jesus 
who  had  '  made  me  whole.'  I  made  my.  own 
experience  '  witness  '  for  me  to  that  degree.  If 
that  is  what  they  mean  by  teaching  I  like  to  do 
it.  I  mean  to  go  to  Sunday-school  just  as  soon 
as  I  get  Lome,  and  if  I  find  out  that  they  just 
tell  about  things  as  they  are  in  the  Bible  I  can 
do  it.  I  can  make  the  boys  listen  to  me,  I 
know." 

Bright  little  fairy  that  she  was  !  There  was 
a  new  glow  about  her  face.  She  was  waking  tcr 
the  thought  that  there  was  such  a  thing  as  power 
over  people's  brains.  No  danger  but  she  will 
use  her  knowledge.  Let  me  tell  you  another 
thing  that  Chautauqua  did  for  her.  It  planted 
the  seed  that  shall  blossom  into  splendid  teach 
ing.  There  was  one  teacher  who  gave  many 
glances  that  morning  to  the  little  group  around 
that  old  tree  stump.  Mr.  Roberts,  from  his 
point  of  observation,  not  far  away,  watched  this 
scene  from  beginning  to  end.  It  fascinated  him. 
He  saw  the  timid  beoinnin£  and  the  ever- in- 


286 


Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 


creasing  interest,  until,  when  Flossy  closed  her 
Bible  and  arose,  he  turned  his  eyes  from  her 
with  a  quiet  smile  in  them,  and  to  himself  he 
said  :  "  Unless  I  am  very  greatly  mistaken  she 
has  found  something  that  she  can  do." 


CHAPTER  XX. 

PEOPLE  WHO,  "  HAYING  EYES,  SEE  NOT.' 


IRLS ! "  said  Eurie,  as  she  munched  a 
doughnut,  which  she  had  brought  from 
the  lunch-table  with  her,  and  lounged  on  a  camp- 
chair,  waiting  for.  the  afternoon  service,  "  do  you 
know  that  Flossy  taught  a  class  in  Sunday-school 
this  morning  ?  " 

"  Taught,  a  class  !  "  repeated  both  Marion  and 
Ruth  in  one  voice,  and  with  about  equal  degrees 
of  amazement. 

44  She  did,  as  true  as  the  world.  That  is,  she 
must  have  been  teaching.  The  way  of  it  was 
this:  I  went  to  see  the  little  midgets  exhibit 

themselves,  and  when  I  came  out  of  the  tent 

(287) 


288  Four  G-irls  at  Chautauqua. 

and  walked  over  toward  the  stand,  there  sat 
Flossy  on  that  old  stump  just  back  of  the  stand, 
and  before  her  were  two  of  the  roughest-looking 
boys  that  ever  emerged  from  the  backwoods. 
They  were  ragged  and  dirty  and  wild  ;  and  as 
wicked  little  imps  as  one  could  find,  I  am  sure. 
Flossy  was  talking  to  them,  and  she  had  a  large 
Bible  in  her  lap  and  one  of  those  Lesson  Leaves 
that  they  flutter  about  here  so  much;  and  — 
well,  altogether  it  was  an  amazing  sight!  She 
was  certainly  talking  to  them  with  all  her 
might,  and  they  were  listening ;  and  it  is  my 
opinion  that  she  was  trying  to  play  Sunday- 
school  teacher,  and  give  them  a  lesson.  You 
know  she  is  an  imitative  little  sheep,  and  always 
was." 

"  Nonsense !  "  Ruth  said,  and  she  seemed  to 
speak  more  sharply  than  the  occasion  warranted. 
"Just  as  if  Flossy  Shipley  couldn't  have  any 
thing  to  say  to  two  bo}rs  but  what  she  found  in 
the  Bible !  Little  she  knows  what  is  in  it,  for 
that  matter.  I  suppose  she  wandered  out  that 
wa}r  because  she  did  not  know  what  else  to  do 
with  herself,  and  talked  to  the  boys  by  way  of 


People  Who,  "  Having  Eyes,  See  Not."    289 

amusement.  She  has  often  amused  herself  in 
that  way,  I  am  sure." 

"  Ah,  yes ;  but  these  specimens  were  rather 
too  youthful  and  dirty  for  that  sort  of  amuse 
ment,  and  she  had  a  Bible  in  her  lap." 

"  What  of  that !  Bibles  are  as  common  as 
leaves  here.  I  found  two  lying  on  the  seat 
which  I  took  this  morning.  People  seem  to 
think  the  art  of  stealing  has  not  found  its  way 
here." 

"  Flossy  is  changed,"  interrupted  Marion. 
"  The  mouse  is  certainly  different  from  what  1 
ever  saw  her  before;  she  seems  so  quiet  and 
self-sustained.  I  thought  she  was  bored.  Why, 
I  expected  her  to  hail  a  trip  to  her  dear  Sara 
toga  with  absolute  delight!  She  belongs  to 
just  the  class  of  people  who  would  find  the  in 
tellectual  element  here  too  strong  for  her,  and 
would  have  to  flutter  off  in  that  direction  in 
self-defense.  Ruthie,  you  have  the  temper  of  an 
angel  not  to  fly  out  at  me  for  bringing  in  Sara 
toga  every  few  minutes.  It  isn't  with  'malice 
aforethought,'  I  assure  you.  I  forget  your  pro 
jected  scheme  whenever  I  speak  of  it ;  but  you 
must  allow  me  to  be  astonished  over  Flossy's  re- 


290  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

fusul  to  go  with  you.  Something  has  come  over 
the  mousie  that  is  not  explainable  by  any  of  the 
laws  of  science  with  which  I  am  acquainted." 

"  Don't  trouble  yourself  to  apologize,  I  beg. 
I  hope  j^ou  do  not  think  I  am  so  foolish  as  to 
care  anything  about  }rour  hints  as  to  Saratoga. 
Of  course  I  recognize  my  right  in  this  world  to 
be  governed  by  my  own  tastes  and  inclinations. 
I  have  enjoyed  that  privilege  too  long  to  be  dis 
turbed  by  trifles."  This  from  Ruth ;  but  I  shall 
have  to  admit  that  it  was  very  stiffly  spoken,  and 
if  she  had  but  known  it,  indicated  that  she  did 
care  a  great  deal.  In  truth  she  was  very  sore 
over  her  position  and  her  plans.  She  who  had 
prided  herself  on  her  intellectuality  bored  to  the 
veiy  point  of  leaving,  and  Flossy,  who  had  been 
remarkable  for  nothing  but  flutter  and  fashion, 
actually  so  interested  that  she  could  not  be 
coaxed  into  going  away  !  What  ivas  it  that  in 
terested  her  ?  That  was  the  question  which  in 
terested  and  puzzled  Ruth.  She  studied  over  it 
during  all  the  time  that  Marion  and  Eurie  were 
chatting  about  the  morning  service. 

Flossy  was  different ;  there  was  no  shutting 
one's  eyes  to  that  fact.  The  truth  was  that  she 


People  Who,  "  Having  Eyes,  See  Not."    291 

had  suddenly  seemed  to  have  little  in  common 
with  her  own  party.  She  certainly  said  little  to 
them ;  she  made  no  complaints  as  to  inconven 
iences,  even  when  they  amounted  to  positive  an 
noyances  with  the  rest  of  the  party;  she  had 
given  up  afternoon  toilets  altogether,  and  in  fact 
the  suhject  of  dress  seemed  to  be  one  that  had 
suddenly  sunken  into  such  insignificance  as  to 
cease  to  claim  her  theughts  at  all. 

Grave  changes  these  to  be  found  in  Flossy 
Shipley.  Then,  too,  she  had  taken  to  wander 
ing  away  alone  in  the  twilight ;  daring  the  short 
spaces  between  services  she  was  nowhere  to  be 
found,  but  the  Chautauqua  bell  brought  her 
back  invariably  in  time  to  make  ready  for  the 
next  service.  "  There  is  certainly  more  to  the 
little  mouse  than  I  ever  expected  before.  If 
Chautauqua  wakes  our  wits  as  it  has  Flossy's 
we  shall  have  reason  to  bless  the  day  that  Dr. 
Vincent  invented  it."  This  Ruth  heard  from 
Marion  as  she  roused  herself  from  her  reverie  tc 
give  attention  to  what  the  girls  were  saying. 
They  had  got  back  to  a  discussion  of  Flossy 
again.  It  was  a  subject  that  someway  annoyed 
Ruth,  so  she  dismissed  it,  and  made  ready  for 
the  afternoon  meeting,  whither  they  all  went. 


292  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

To  Marion  the  morning  sermon  had  been  an 
intellectual  treat.  She  had  a  way  of  listening 
to  sermons  that  would  have  been  very  disheart 
ening  to  the  preacher  if  he  had  known  of  it. 
She  had  learned  how  to  divest  herself  of  all  per 
sonality.  The  subject  was  one  that  had  nothing 
to  do  with  her;  the  application  of  solemn  truths 
were  for  the  people  around  her  who  believed  in 
these  things,  but  never  for  her ;  so  she  listened 
and  enjoyed,  just  as  she  enjoyed  a  book  or  a 
picture,  just  as  if  she  had  no  soul  at  all,  nothing 
but  an  intellect. 

It  was  very  rare  indeed  that  an  arrow  from 
anjr  one's  quiver  touched  her.  But  there  was 
one  single  sentence  in  Dr.  Pierce's  sermon  that 
was  destined  to  haunt  her.  Said  he  :  "  When 
the  blind  man  was  questioned  he  couldn't  argue, 
he  didn't  try  to ;  but  he  could  stand  up  there 
before  them  and  say,  'Whereas  I  was  blind,  now 
I  see ;  make  the  most  of  that.'  And  wasn't  it 
an  unanswerable  argument?  There  is  no  argu 
ment  like  it.  When  men  are  honest  and  earnest 
and  spiritual  in  Wall  S,treet,  it  tells." 

Now  that  wras  just  the  kind  of  sentence  to  de 
light  Marion's  heart.  The  inconsistencies  of 


People  Who,  "Having  Eyes,  See  Not"    29b 

Christians  was  one  of  her  very  strong  points ; 
she  saw  them  bristling  out  everywhere,  and  she 
looked  about  her  with  a  satisfied  smile  on  her 
face  that  so  large  a  company  of  them  were  get 
ting  so  sharp  a  thrust  as  this. 

And  suddenly  their  flashed  across  her  brain 
an  utterly  new  thought.  "  Whereas  I  was 
blind,  now  I  see."  "  Perhaps,"  she  said  to  her 
self —  '•perhaps  I  am  blind.  What  if  that  should 
be  the  only  reason  why  these  things  are  not  to 
me  as  they  are  to  others.  How  do  I  know, 
after  all,  but  their  may  really  be  a  spiritual 
blindness,  and  that  it  may  be  holding  me  ?  How 
do  I  know  but  that  the  reason  some  of  these 
poor  ignorant  people  whom  I  meet  are  so  firm  in 
their  belief  of  Christ  and  heaven  is  because  they 
have  had  just  this  experience  ? 

"'  Whereas  I  was  blind,  now  I  see  ! '  How  can 
I  possibly  tell  but  that  this  may  be  the  case  ?  I 
wonder  what  I  do  think  anyway  ?  Do  I  really 
think  that  all  these  men  gathered  here  are  either 
deceived  or  deceivers  ?  One  or  the  other  they 
must  be  —  and  either  position  is  too  silly  to  sus 
tain —  or  else  I  must  be  blind.  If  there  should 
be  such  a  thing  as  seeing,  and  I  discover  it  too 


294  Four  Grirls  at  Chautauqua. 

late  !  If  there  is  a  too  late  to  this  thing,  and  1 
do  not  find  it  out  simply  because  I  am  blind, 
what  then?  The  sun  shines,  of  course,  though 
I  dare  say  an  entirely  blind  man  doesn't  believe 
it.  Doesn't  have  an  idea  anyway  what  it  is  — 
how  can  he  ?  " 

Over  and  over  did  she  revolve  this  sentence, 
and  look  at  it  from  every  attainable  standpoint. 
No  use  to  try  to  shut  it  off,  back  it  came.  All 
the  clatter  with  which  she  had  amused  herself 
during  the  interval  between  meetings  had  not 
banished  it.  No  sooner  was  she  seated  under 
those  trees  waiting  for  the  afternoon  service 
than  the  thought  presented  itself  for  her  to  con 
sider. 

"  I  wonder  if  there  are  different  degrees  of 
moral  blindness  ?  "  she  said,  suddenly.  "  Peo 
ple  who  can  see  just  enough  to  enable  them  to 
keep  constantly  going  the  wrong  way,  so  that 
they  are  no  better  off  than  the  blind,  except 
that  they  admit  that  there  is  such  a  thing  as 
seeing.  The  thing  is  possible,  I  suppose." 

Ruth  turned  and  looked  at  her  wondering! y. 

"  What  are  you  talking  about  ?  "  she  asked  at 
last. 


People  Who,  "Having  Eyes,  See  Not"    295 

"  I'm  moralizing,"  Marion  said,  laughing. 
;i  You  yourself  suggested  that  train  of  thought. 
I  was  wondering  which  of  us  was  right  in  our 
notions,  you  or  I ;  and,  for  all  practical  purposes, 
what  difference  it  made." 

"  You  are  too  high  up  for  me  to  follow.  I 
haven't  the  least  idea  what  you  mean." 

u  Why,  I  tell  you  I  was  contrasting  our  condi 
tions.  Let  me  see  if  I  have  a  right  view  of 
them.  Don't  you  honestly  think  that  there  is  a 
God,  and  a  heaven,  and  a  hell,  and  that  to  escape 
the  one  place  and  secure  the  other  certain  efforts 
upon  your  part  are  necessary  ?  " 

"  Why,  of  course  I  think  so.  I  have  never 
made  any  pretense  of  disbelieving  all  these 
things.  I  think  it  is  foolish  to  do  so." 

"Exactly.  Now  for  one  question  more  :  Have 
you  made  the  effort  that  you  believe  to  be  nec 
essary  ?  " 

"  Have  you  been  hired  as  an  exhorter  ?  "  Ruth 
said,  trying  to  laugh.  "  Why,  no,  I  can  not  say 
that  I  have." 

"  Well,  then,  suppose  you  and  I  should  both 
die  to-night.  /  don't  believe  any  of  these 
things ;  you  do,  but  you  don't  practice  on  your 


296  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

belief.  Then,  according  to  your  own  view,  you 
will  be  lost  forever ;  and,  according  to  that  same 
view,  so  shall  I.  Now,  practically,  what  differ 
ence  is  there  between  us?  So  if  it  is  really 
blindness,  why  may  not  one  be  totally  blind  as 
well  as  to  have  a  little  sight  that  keeps  one  all 
the  time  in  the  wrong  way  ?  " 

"  I  dare  say  we  are  quite  as  well  off,"  Ruth 
said,  composedly;  "only  I  think  there  is  this 
point  of  difference  between  us.  I  think  your 
position  is  silly.  I  don't  see  how  any  one  who 
has  studied  Paley  and  Butler,  and  in  fact  any 
of  the  sciences,  can  think  so  foolish  a  thing  as 
you  pretend  to.  One  doesn't  like  to  be  foolish, 
even  if  one  doesn't  happen  to  be  a  Christian." 

"  Foolish  ?  "  Marion  repeated,  and  there  was  a 
fine  glow  on  her  face.  "  Don't  you  go  and  talk 
anything  so  wild  as  that !  If  there  is  any  class 
of  people  in  this  world  who  profess  to  be  sim 
pletons,  and  act  up  to  their  professions,  it  is  you 
people  who  believe  everything  and  do  nothing. 
Now  just  look  at  the  thing  for  a  minute.  Sup 
pose  you  say,  4  There  is  a  precipice  over  there, 
and  every  whiff  of  wind  blows  us  nearer  to  it ; 
we  will  surely  go  over  if  we  sit  here ;  we  ought 


People  Who,  "  Having  Eyes,  See  Not."    297 

to  go  up  on  that  hill ;  I  know  that  is  a  safe 
place,'  and  }ret  you  sit  perfectly  still.  And  sup 
pose  I  say,  '  I  don't  believe  there  is  any  such 
thing  as  a  precipice,  and  I  believe  this  is  just  as 
safe  a  place  as  there  is  anj^where,'  and  Jsit  still. 
Xow  I  should  like  to  know  which  of  us  was  act 
ing  the  sillier  ?  " 

"  You  would  be,"  Ruth  said,  stoutly,  "  if  3^011 
persisted  in  disbelieving  what  could  be  proved 
to  you  so  clearly  that  no  person  with  common 
sense  would  think  of  denying  it." 

"  Humph  !  "  said  Marion,  settling  back  ;  "  in 
that  case  I  think  there  would  be  very  little  chance 
for  each  to  accuse  the  other  of  folly ;  only  I  con 
fess  to  you  just  this,  Huth  Erskine,  if  you  could 
prove  to  me  that  there  was  a  precipice  over  there, 
and  that  we  were  being  carried  toward  it,  and 
that  the  hill  was  safe,  1  know  in  my  very 
soul  that  I  should  get  up  and  go  to  that  hill.  I 
would  not  be  such  a  fool  as  to  delay,  I  know  I 
wouldn't." 

"  You  are  frank,"  Ruth  said,  and  her  face  was 
flushed.  "  I  ani  sure  I  don't  see  why  }~ou  don't 
make  the  attempt  and  decide  for  yourself,  if  you 
feel  this  thing  so  deeply.  I  think  there  ought 


298  Four  Girls  at  CJtautauqua. 

to  be  a  prajrer-meeting  on  your  account.  If  1 
knew  Dr.  Vincent  I  would  try  to  have  this  thing 
turned  into  a  regular  camp-meeting  time,  then 
you  would  doubtless  get  all  the  help  you  need." 

Marion  laughed  good-humoredly. 

"  Don't  waste  your  sarcasm  on  me,"  she  said, 
cheerily;  "keep  your  weapons  for  more  impress 
ible  subjects.  You  know  I  am  not  in  the  least 
afraid  of  any  such  arguments.  I  have  been  talk 
ing  downright  truth  and  common  sense,  and  you 
know  it,  and  are  hit ;  that  is  what  makes  you  sar 
castic.  Did  you  know  that  was  at  the  bottom 
of  most  sarcasm,  my  dear  ?  " 

"  Do  hush,  please.  These  people  before  us 
are  trying  hard  to  hear  what  the  speaker  is  say- 
ing." 

This  was  Ruth's  answer ;  but  she  had  had  her 
sermon ;  and  of  all  the  preachers  at  Chautauqua 
the  one  who  had  preached  to  her  was  Marion 
Wilbur,  the  infidel  school-teacher  !  It  was  her 
use  of  Dr.  Pierce's  arrow  that  had  thrust  Ruth. 
She  gave  herself  up  to  the  thought  of  it  all  dur 
ing  that  wonderful  afternoon  meeting.  Very 
little  did  she  hear  of  the  speeches,  save  now  and 
then  a  sentence  more  vivid  than  the  rest;  her 


People  Who,  "Having  Eyes,  See  Not."    299 

brain  was  busy  with  new  thoughts.  Was  it  all  so 
very  queer?  Did  it  look  to  others  than  Mar 
ion  a  strange  way  to  live  ?  Did  she  actually  be 
lieve  these  things  for  which  she  had  been  con 
tending  ?  If  she  did,  was  she  in  very  deed  an 
idiot  ?  It  actually  began  to  look  as  though  she 
might  be.  She  was  not  wild  like  Eurie,  nor  in 
tense  and  emotional,  like  Marion  ;  she  was  still 
and  cold,  and,  in  her  way,  slow  ;  given  to  weigh 
ing  thoughts,  and  acting  calmly  from  decisions 
rather  than  from  impulse.  It  struck  her  oddty 
enough  now  that,  having  so  stoutly  defended  the 
cardinal  doctrines  of  Christian  faith,  she  should 
have  no  weapons  except  sarcasm  with  which  to 
meet  a  bold  appeal  to  her  inconsistency. 

"  When  I  get  home  from  Saratoga,"  she  said, 
at  last,  turning  uneasily  in  her  seat,  annoyed  at 
the  persistency  of  her  thoughts,  "  I  really  mean 
to  look  into  this  thing.  I  am  not  sure  but  a 
sense  of  propriety  should  lead  one  to  make  a 
profession  of  religion.  It  is,  as  Marion  says, 
strange  to  believe  as  we  do  and  not  indicate  ifc 
by  our  professions.  I  am  not  sure  but  the  right 
thing  for  me  to  do  would  be  to  unite  with  the 
church.  There  is  certainly  some  ground  for  the 


300  Four  G-irls  at  (Jhautauqua. 

thrusts  that  Marion  has  been  giving.  My  posi 
tion  must  seem  inconsistent  to  her.  I  certainly 
believe  these  things.  What  harm  in  my  saying 
so  to  everybody  ?  Rather,  is  it  not  the  right 
thing  to  do  ?  I  will  unite  with  the  church  from 
a  sense  of  duty,  not  because  my  feelings  happen 
to  be  wrought  upon  by  some  strong  excitement. 
I  wonder  just  what  is  required  of  people  when 
they  join  the  church  ?  A  sense  of  their  own  de 
pendence  on  Christ  for  salvation  I  suppose.  I 
certainly  feel  that.  I  am  not  an  unbeliever  in 
any  sense  of  the  word.  I  respect  Christian  peo 
ple,  and  always  did.  *  Mother  used  to  be  a 
church-m ember  ;  I  suppose  she  would  be  now  if 
she  were  not  an  invalid.  Most  of  the  married 
ladies  in  our  set  are  church-members.  I  don't 
see  why  it  isn't  quite  as  proper  for  young  ladies 
to  be.  I  certainly  mean  to  give  some  attention 
to  this  matter  just  as  soon  as  the  season  is  over 
at  Saratoga.  In  the  meantime  I  wonder  when 
there  is  a  train  I  can  get,  and  if  I  couldn't  tele 
graph  to  mother  to  send  my  trunks  on  and  have 
them  there  when  I  arrived." 


CHAPTER  XXL 

A   "SENSE  OF  DUTY." 

is  not  so  easy  to  get  away  from  one's 
self  as  you  might  think,  if  you  never  had 
occasion  to  try  it.  Ruth  Erskine  —  who 
honestly  thought  herself  on  the  high  road  to 
heaven  because  she  had  decided  to  offer  herself 
for  church-membership  as  soon  as  she  returned 
from  Saratoga  —  did  not  find  the  comfort  and 
rest  of  heart  that  so  heroic  a  resolution  ought  to 
have  brought. 

It  was  in  vain  that  she  endeavored  to  dismiss 
the  subject  and  try  to  decide  just  what  new  cos 
tume  the  Saratoga  trip  would  demand.  If  she 
could  only  have  gotten  away  from  the  crowd  of 

people  and  out  of  that  meeting  back  to  the  quiet 

301 


302  Four  Girls  at  Cliautauqua. 

of  her  tent,  she  might  have  succeeded  in  arrang 
ing  her  wardrobe  to  her  satisfaction ;  but  she 
was  completely  hedged  in  from  any  way  of  es 
cape,  and  the  inconsiderate  speakers  constantly 
made  allusions  that  thrust  the  arrow  further  into 
her  brain  ;  I  am  not  sure  that  it  could  have  been 
said  to  have  reached  her  heart. 

"  Who  is  to  blame  that  you  can  not  all  be  ad 
dressed  as  workers  for  Christ?  Who  is  your 
Master  ?  Why  do  you  not  serve  him  ?  " 

These  were  sentences  that  struck  in  upon  her 
just  as  she  was  deciding  to  have  a  new  summer 
silk,  trimmed  with  shillings  of  the  same  mater 
ial  a  shade  darker. 

"  Workers  !  " 

She  did  not  know  whether  the  speaker  gave 
a  peculiar  emphasis  to  that  word,  or  whether  it 
only  sounded  so  to  her  ears.  Did  this  resolution 
that  she  had  made  put  her  among  the  workers? 
What  was  she  ready  to  do  ?  Teach  in  the  Sab 
bath-school  ?  Involuntarily  she  shrugged  her 
shoulders;  she  did  not  like  children;  tract  dis 
tributing,  too,  was  hateful  work,  and  out  of  style 
she  had  heard  some  one  say.  What  wonderful 
work  was  to  be  done  ?  She  was  sure  she  didn't 


A  "Sense  of  Duty:'  303 

know.  Sewing  certainly  wasn't  in  her  line  ;  she 
couldn't  make  clothes  for  the  poor ;  but,  then, 
she  could  give  money  to  buy  them  with.  Oh, 
yes,  she  was  perfectly  willing  to  do  that.  And 
then  she  tried  to  determine  whether  it  would  be 
well  to  get  a  new  black  grenadine,  or  whether  a 
black  silk  would  suit  her  better.  She  had  got 
it  trimmed  with  four  rows  of  knife  pleating, 
headed  with  puffs,  when  she  was  suddenly  re 
turned  to  the  meeting. 

Somebody  was  telling  a  story ;  she  had  not 
been  given  sufficient  attention  to  know  who  the 
speaker  was,  but  he  told  his  story  remarkably 
well.  It  must  have  been  about  a  miserable  lit 
tle  street  boy  who  was  sick,  and  another  misera 
ble  street  boy  seemed  to  be  visiting  him. 
This  was  where  her  ears  took  it  up : 
"  It  was  up  a  ricketty  pair  of  stairs,  and  an 
other,  and  another,  to  a  filthy  garret.  There  lay 
the  sick  boy  burning  with  a  fever,  mother  and 
father  both  drunk,  and  no  one  to  do  anything  or 
care  anything  for  the  boy  who  was  fighting 
with  death.  '  Ben,'  said  his  dirty-faced  visitor, 
bending  over  him,  4  you're  pretty  bad  ain't  you  ? 
Ben,  do  you  ever  pray  ?  *  '  No,'  says  Ben,  turn- 


304  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

ing  fevered  eyes  on  the  questioner:  'I  don't 
know  what  that  is.'  '  Did  you  know  there  was 
a  man  once  named  Jesus  Christ?  He  come  to 
this  world  on  purpose  to  save  people  who  are  go 
ing  to  die.  Did  you  ever  be  told  about  him  ?  ' 
4  No  ;  who  is  he  ? '  *  Why,  he  is  God ;  you  have 
to  believe  on  him.'  '  I  don't  know  what  you 
mean.'  '  Why,  ask  him  to  save  3rou.  When 
you  die  you  ask  him  to  take  you  and  save  you. 
I  heard  about  him  at  school.'  '  Will  he  do  it  ?  ' 
4  Yes,  he  will  sure.  Them  sa}<s  so  as  have 
tried  him.'  Silence  in  the  garret,  Ben  with  his 
face  turned  to  the  wall  the  fever  growing  less, 
the  pulse  growing  fainter  :  suddenly  he  turns 
back.  c  I've  asked  him,'  lie  said  ;  '  I've  asked 
him,  and  he  said  he  would.' ' 

Ruth  looked  about  her  nervously.  People 
were  weeping  softly  all  around  her.  Marion 
brushed  two  great  tears  from  her  glowing  cheeks, 
and  Ruth,  with  her  heart  beating  with  such  a 
quickened  motion  that  it  made  her  faint,  won 
dered  what  was  the  matter  with  every  one,  and 
wished  this  dreadful  meeting  was  over,  or  that 
she  had  gone  to  Saratoga  on  Saturday. 

It  was  hard  to  go  back  to  the  puffs  on  that 


A  "  Sense  of  Duty."  305 

grenadine  dress  in  the  midst  of  all  this,  but  with 
a  resolute  struggle  she  threw  herself  back  into 
an  argument  as  to  whether  she  would  stop  on 
her  way  to  make  purchases,  or  run  down  to  Al 
bany  as  soon  as  she  was  comfortably  settled  at 
her  hotel.  Mr.  Bliss  was  the  next  one  who 
roused  her. 

You  have  never  heard  him  sing  ?  Then  I  am 
sorry  for  you.  How  can  I  tell  you  anything 
about  it?  You  should  hear  Ruth  tell  it !  How 
his  voice  rolled  out  and  up  from  under  those 
grand  old  trees ;  how  distinctly  every  word  fell 
on  your  ear,  as  distinctly  as  though  you  and  he 
had  been  together  in  a  little  room  alone,  and  he 
had  sung  it  for  you. 

"  This  loving  Savior  stands  patiently  — 
Though  oft  rejected, 

Calls  again  for  thee. 
Calling  now  for  thee,  prodigal, 
Calling  now  for  thee  ; 
Thou  hast  wandered  far  away, 
But  he's  calling  now  for  thee." 

What  was  the  matter  with  everybody  ?  Was 
this  an  army  of  prodigals  who  had  gathered  un- 


806  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

der  the  trees  this  Sabbath  afternoon  ?  Turn 
where  she  would  they  were  wiping  away  the 
tears  ;  she  felt  herself  as  if  she  could  hardly  keep 
back  her  own  ;  and  yet  why  should  she  weep? 
"What  had  that  song  to  do  with  her  ?  She  cer 
tainly  was  not  a  prodigal  ;  she  had  never  wan 
dered,  for  she  had  never  professed  to  be  a  Christ 
ian. 

What  strange  logic,  that  because  I  have  never 
owned  my  Father's  love  and  care,  therefore  I 
am  not  a  wanderer  from  him  I 

Ruth  did  not  understand  it ;  she  felt  almost 
provoked  ;  had  she  not  decided  this  very  after 
noon  and  for  the  first  time  in  her  life  that  it  was 
fitting  and  eminently  the  proper  thing  to  do  to 
unite  with  the  church,  and  had  she  not  deter 
mined  upon  doing  it  just  as  soon  as  the  season 
was  over  ?  What  more  could  she  do  ?  Why 
could  she  not  now  have  a  little  peace?  If 
this  was  the  "comfort"  and  "rest"  that  the 
Christians  at  Chautauqua  had  been  talking 
about  for  a  week,  she  was  sure  the  less  she  had 
of  them  the  better,  for  she  never  felt  so  uncom 
fortable  in  her  life.  Nevertheless,  she  adhered 
to  her  resolution. 


A  "  Sense  of  Duty."  307 

So  settled  was  she  that  it  was  the  next  proper 
thing  to  do  that  she  staid  at  home  from  the  meet 
ing  that  evening  to  write  a  letter  to  Mr.  Wayne, 
the  gentleman  who  you  will  perhaps  remember, 
accompanied  the  girls  to  the  depot  on  the  morn 
ing  of  their  departure,  and  expressed  his  disgust 
with  the  whole  plan. 

As  this  is  the  first  religious  letter  Miss  Ruth 
Erskine  ever  wrote,  you  shall  be  gratified  with  a 
copy  of  it : 

{»  DEAR  HAEOLD  : 

I  am  alone  in  the  tent  this  evening  —  the  girls 
have  all  gone  to  meeting ;  but  I,  finding  it  ex 
haustive,  not  to  say  tiresome,  to  be  so  constantly 
listening  to  sermons,  have  staid  at  home  to  write 
to  you.  I  have  something  to  tell  you  which  I 
know  will  please  you.  I  am  going  to  start  for 
Saratoga  to-morrow  morning.  I  think  I  shall 
take  the  10:50  train.  Now  don't  you  make  up 
your  mind  to  laugh  at  me  and  say  that  I  have 
grown  tired  of  Chautauqua  sooner  than  any  of 
the  rest.  It  is  true  enough. 

"You  know  my  mode  of  life  and  my  enjo}rments 
are  necessarily  very  different  from  Eurie's  and 


308  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

Marion's.  Those  two  naturally  look  upon  this 
place  as  an  escape  from  every-day  drudgery  ;  in 
short,  as  an  economical  place  in  which  to  enjoy 
a  vacation  and  see  a  good  deal  of  first-class  so 
ciety  ;  for  there  are  a  great  many  first-class  peo 
ple  here,  there  is  no  denying  that.  Not  many 
from  our  set,  you  know,  but  a  great  many  cele- 
braties  in  the  literary  world  that  it  is  really  very 
pleasant  to  see. 

"  I  am  not  sorry  that  I  came  ;  if  for  nothing  else 
I  am  glad  to  have  come  on  the  girls'  account ; 
they  would  hardly  have  ventured  without  me, 
and  it  is  a  real  treat  to  them. 

"  You  will  wonder  what  has  become  of  poor  lit 
tle  Flossy,  and  want  to  know  whether  she  is  go 
ing  to  follow  me  to  Saratoga  as  usual,  but  the 
little  sprite  refuses  to  go  !  I  fancy  Marion  has 
been  teasing  her;  you  know  she  is  very  suscept 
ible  to  ridicule,  and  it  suits  Marion's  fancy  to 
amuse  herself  at  the  expense  of  those  people 
who  weary  of  Chautauqua.  She  lias  attempted 
something  of  the  kind  on  me,  but,  of  course  I  am 
indifferent  to  any  such  shafts,  having  been  in  the 
habit  of  leading,  rather  than  following,  all  my 
life.  It  seems  natural,  I  suppose,  to  do  so  still. 


A  "Sense  of  Duty."  309 

I  think  well  of  Chau  tan  qua.  It  is  a  good  place 
for  people  to  come  who  have  not  much  money  to 
spend,  and  who  like  to  be  in  a  pleasant  place 
among  pleasant  people  ;  and  who  enjoy  fine  mu 
sic,  and  fine  lectures,  and  all  that  sort  of  thing, 
and  are  so  trammelled  by  work  and  small  means 
at  home  that  they  cannot  cultivate  these  tastes. 
But,  of  course,  all  these  things  are  no  treat  to 
me,  and  I  do  not  hesitate  to  tell  }rou  that  I  am 
bored.  There  is  too  much  preaching  to  suit  my 
fancy  —  not  real  preaching,  either,  for  we  haven't 
had  what  you  could  call  a  sermon  until  to-dajr, 
but  lectures,  which  constantly  bring  the  same 
theme  before  you. 

"  Now  }'ou  are  not  to  conclude  from  this  that  I 
do  not  believe  in  preaching,  and  Sunday,  and  all 
that  sort  of  thing;  on  the  contrary,  I  believe 
more  fully  in  them  all  than  I  did  before  I  came. 
In  fact  I  have  this  very  afternoon  come  to  a  de 
termination  which  ma}r  surprise  }TOU,  and  which 
is  partl}r  the  occasion  of  my  writing  this  letter, 
in  order  that  you  may  know  at  once  what  to  ex 
pect.  Harold,  as  soon  as  the  season  is  over,  and 
I  get  back  home,  I  am  going  to  unite  with  the 
church  ?  Have  I  astonished  you  !  I  am  going 


310  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

to  do  this  from  a  conviction  of  duty.  You  need 
not  imagine  that  I  have  been  wrought  up  to 
such  a  pitch  of  excitement  that  I  don't  know 
what  I  am  about.  I  assure  you  there  is  nothing 
of  the  kind.  I  have  simply  concluded  that  it  is 
an  eminently  proper  thing  to  do.  So  long  as  I 
believe  fully  in  the  church  and  in  religion,  and 
wish  to  sustain  both  by  my  money  and  my  in 
fluence,  why  should  I  not  say  so?  That  is  a 
very  simple  and  altogether  proper  way  of  saying 
it,  and  saves  a  good  deal  of  troublesome  explana 
tion.  I  wonder  that  I  haven't  thought  of  it  be 
fore. 

"  I  do  not  mind  telling  you  that  it  was  some 
remarks  of  Marion's  that  first  suggested  the  pro 
priety  of  this  thing  to  me.  You  know  she  is  an 
infidel  and  I  am  not ;  and  she  intimated  what  is 
true  enough,  that  I  lived  exactly  as  though  I 
thought  just  as  she  did  ;  so  in  thinking  it  over  I 
concluded  it  was  true,  and  that  my  influence 
ought  to  be  with  the  church  in  this  matter.  Now 
you  know,  Harold,  that  with  me  to  decide  is  to 
do  ;  so  this  is  as  good  as  done.  I  should  like  ifc 
Very  well  if  you  choose  to  come  to  the  same  con- 


A  «  Sense  of  Duty:9  311 

elusion  and  unite  at  the  same  time  that  I  do.  I 
am  sure  Dr.  Dennis  would  be  gratified.  I  don't 
know  why  we  shouldn't  be  willing  to  have  it 
known  where  we  stand  ;  and  I  know  you  respect 
the  church  and  trust  her  as  well  as  I  do  myself. 

"  I  told  Marion  to-day  "  I  did  not  see  how  a 
person  with  brains  could  be  an  infidel,"  or  some 
thing  to  that  effect  —  and  I  don't .  I  think  that 
is  such  a  silly  view  to  take  of  life.  Just  as  if 
everything  could  come  by  chance  !  And  if  God 
did  not  make  everything,  who  did  ?  I  have  no 
patience  with  that  sort  of  thing,  and  I  am  glad 
to  remember  that  3-011  have  no  such  tastes. 

"  By  the  wa}r,  are  the  Arnotts  in  Saratoga  ?  I 
hope  not,  for  they  are  such  fanatics  there  is  no 
comfort  in  meeting  them,  and  yet  one  has  to  be 
civil. 

44  Seems  to  me  you  do  not  enjoy  the  opera  as 
well  as  usual,  nor  the  hops  either.  What  is  the 
matter  ?  Do  you  really  miss  me  ?  If  there  is 
airy  such  foolish  fancy  in  your  heart  as  that,  pre 
pare  to  enjoy  yourself  next  week,  for  I  shall  be 
with  you  at  every  one  of  them  after  Tuesday.  It 
will  take  me  until  then  to  get  something  decent 
to  wear. 


312  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

"  I  hear  the  girls  coming  up  the  hill,  and  I  must 

leave  you. 

"Au  revoir, 

'?  RUTH." 

Folding  and  addressing  this  epistle  with  a  sat 
isfied  air,  and  still  full  of  the  spirit  which  had 
prompted  her  to  write  a  religious  letter,  Ruth, 
finding  that  Marion  had  come  in  alone,  and  that 
Flossy  and  Eurie  were  still  loitering  up  the  hill, 
gave  herself  the  satisfaction  of  communicating 
her  change  of  views. 

"  I  have  been  thinking  a  good  deal  about  what 
you  said  this  afternoon,  Marion,  and  there  is 
truth  in  it.  I  do  not  think  as  you  do,  and  I 
ought  to  take  some  measures  to  let  people  know 
it.  I  have  the  most  perfect  respect  for  and  con 
fidence  in  religion,  and  I  mean  to  prove  it  by 
uniting  with  the  church.  I  have  decided  to  at 
tend  to  that  matter  as  soon  as  I  get  home  again 
after  the  season  is  over.  I  am  surprised  at  my 
self  for  not  doing  so  before,  for  I  certainly  con 
sider  it  eminently  proper,  in  fact  a  duty." 

Now,  it  was  very  provoking  to  have  so  relig 
ious  a  sentence  as  this  received  in  the  manner 
that  it  was.  Marion  tilted  her  stool  back  against 


A  "Sense  of  Duty."  313 

the  bed,  and  gave  herself  up  to  the  luxury  of  a 
ringing  laugh. 

"  Realty,"  Ruth  said,  "  you  have  returned 
from  church  in  a  very  hilarious  mood  ;  something 
very  funny  must  have  happened  ;  it  can  not  be 
that  anything  in  my  sentence  had  to  do  with  your 
amusement." 

"  Yes,  but  it  has,"  squealed  Marion,  holding  her 
sides  and  laughing  still.  "  Oh,  Ruthie,  Ruthie, 
you  will  be  the  death  of  me  !  And  so  you  think 
that  this  is  religion  !  You  honestly  suppose  that 
standing  up  in  church  and  having  your  name 
read  off  constitutes  Chris tianity  !  Don't  do  it, 
Ruthie  ;  }*ou  have  never  been  a  hypocrite,  and 
I  have  always  honored  you  because  you  were  not. 
If  this  is  all  the  religion  you  can  find,  go  without 
it  forever  and  ever,  for  I  tell  you  there  is  not  a 
single  bit  in  it." 

Her  laughter  had  utterly  ceased,  and  her  voice 
was  solemn  in  its  intensity. 

"  I  don't  dnow  what  you  mean  in  the  least," 
Ruth  said,  testity.  "  You  are  talking  about 
something  of  wrhich  you  know  nothing." 

"So  are  you.  Oh,  Ruthie,  so  are  you  !  Yes, 
I  know  something  about  it;  I  know  that  you 


314  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

liaveu't  reached  the  A,  B,  C,  of  it.  Why,  Ruthie, 
do  you  remember  that  story  this  afternoon  ?  Do 
you  remember  that  little  boy  in  the  garret,  how 
he  turned  his  face  to  the  wall  and  asked  God  to 
save  him  ?  Have  you  done  that  ?  Do  you  hon 
estly  think  that  you,  Ruth  Erskine,  have  any 
thing  to  be  saved  from  ?  Don't  you  know  the 
little  fellow  said,  '-He  answered'  Has  He  an 
swered  you  ?  Why,  Ruth,  do  you  never  listen 
to  the  church  covenant?  How  does  it  read: 
4  That  it  is  eminently  fit  and  proper  for  those 
who  believe  that  God  made  them  to  join  the 
church  ?  '  Ruth  Erskine,  you  can  never  take 
more  solemn  vows  upon  you  than  you  will  have 
to  take  if  you  unite  with  the  church,  and  I  beg 
you  not  to  do  it.  I  tell  you  it  means  more  than 
that.  I  had  a  father  who  was  a  member  of  the 
church,  and  he  prayed  —  oh,  how  he  prayed  ! 
He  was  the  best  man  who  ever  lived  on  earth ! 
Every  one  knew  he  was  good ;  every  one  thought 
lie  was  a  saint ;  and  it  seems  to  me  as  though  I 
could  never  love  any  God  who  did  not  give  him 
a  happier  lot  than  he  had  as  a  reward  for  his 
holy  life.  But  do  you  think  he  thought  himself 
good  ?  I  tell  you  he  felt  that  .no  one  could  be 


A  "  Sense  of  Duty."  315 

more  weak  and  sinful  and  in  need  of  saving  than 
lie  was.  Oh,  I  know  the  people  who  rnuke  up 
churches  have  more  than  this  in  them.  I  think 
it  is  all  a  deception,  but  it  is  a  blessed  one  to 
have.  I  know  these  people  at  Chautauqua  have 
it,  hundreds  of  them.  I  see  the  same  look  in 
their  faces  that  my  father  had  in  his,  and  if  I 
could  only  get  the  same  delusion  into  my  heart 
I  would  hug  it  for  my  blessed  father's  sake ;  but 
don't  }TOU  ever  go  into  the  church  and  subscribe 
to  these  things  that  they  will  ask  of  you  until 
you  have  felt  the  same  need  of  help  and  the 
same  sense  of  being  helped  that  they  have.  If 
you  do,  and  there  is  a  God,  I  would  rather  stand 
my  chance  with  him  than  to  have  yours." 

And  Marion  seized  her  hat  and  rushed  out  into 
the  night,  leaving  Ruth  utterly  dumbfounded. 


CHAPTER  XXIL 

ONE  MINUTE'S  WOKK. 

* 


,  ARION  struck  out  into  the  darkness,  car 
ing  little  winch  way  she  went ;  she  had 
rarely  been  so  wrought  upon  ;  her  veins  seemed 
to  glow  with  lire.  What  difference  did  it  make  ? 
she  asked  herself.  If  there  was  nothing  at  all  in 
it,  why  not  let  Ruth  amuse  herself  by  joining  the 
church  and  playing  at  religion  ?  It  would  add 
to  her  sense  of  dignity,  and  who  would  be  hurt 
by  it? 

There  was  a  difficulty  in  the  way.  Turn 
where  she  would,  it  confronted  Marion  during 
these  days.  There  was  a  solemn  haunting  "if" 
that  would  not  be  put  down.  What  (fall  these 

things  were  true  ?     She  by  no  means  felt  so  as- 
(316) 


One  Minute's   Work.  317 

sured  as  she  had  once  done ;  indeed,  the  founda 
tions  for  her  disbelief  seemed  to  have  been 
shaken  from  under  her  during  the  last  week. 

Remember,  she  had  never  spent  a  week  with 
Christians  before  in  her  life ;  not,  at  least,  a 
week  during  which  she  was  made  to  realize  all 
the  time  that  they  were  Christians  ;  that  they 
stood  on  a  different  platform  from  herself. 

Now,  as  she  tramped  about  through  the  dark 
ening  woods,  meeting  constantly  groups  of  peo 
ple  on  their  way  home  from  the  meeting,  hear 
ing  from  them  snatches  of  what  had  been  said 
and  sung,  she  suddenly  paused,  and  so  vivid  was 
the  impression  that  for  long  afterward  she  could 
not  think  of  it  without  feeling  that  a  voice  must 
certainly  have  spoken  the  words  in  her  ear.  Yet 
she  recognized  them  as  a  sentence  which  had 
struck  her  from  Dr.  Pierce's  sermon  in  the  morn 
ing. 

"  God  honors  his  gospel,  even  though  preached 
by  a  bad  man ;  honors  it  sometimes  to  the  sav 
ing  of  a  soul.  But  think  of  a  meeting  between 
the  two  I  the  sinner  saved  and  the  sinner  lost, 
who  was  the  means  cf  the  other's  salvation."  It 
had  thrilled  Marion  at  the  time,  with  her  old 


318  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

questioning  thrill :  What  if  such  a  thing  were 
possible  !  Now  it  came  again. 

She  stood  perfectly  still,  all  the  blood  seeming 
to  recede  from  and  leave  her  faint  with  the 
strange  solemnity  of  the  thought !  What  if  she 
had  this  evening  been  preaching  the  gospel  to 
Ruth  !  What  if  the  words  of  hers  should  lead 
Ruth  to  think,  and  to  hunt,  and  to  find  this  light 
that  those  who  were  not  blind  —  if  there  were 
any  such  —  succeeded  in  finding!  What  if,  as 
a  result  of  this,  she  should  go  to  heaven !  and 
what  if  it  were  true  that  there  was  to  be  a  judg 
ment,  and  they  two  should  meet,  and  then  and 
there  she  should  realize  that  it  was  because  of 
this  evening's  talk  that  Ruth  stood  in  glory  on 
the  other  side  of  the  great  gulf  of  separation  I 
What  kind  of  a  feeling  would  that  be  ? 

"  Oh,  if  I  only  knew,"  she  said  aloud,  sitting 
suddenly  down  on  a  fallen  log,  "if  I  only  knew 
that  any  of  these  things  were  so !  or  if  I  could 
only  get  to  imagining  that  they  were,  I  would 
take  them  up  and  have  the  comfort  out  of  them 
that  some  of  these  people  seem  to  get,  for  I  have 
so  little  comfort  in  my  life.  It  can  not  be  that 
it  is  all  a  farce,  such  as  Ruth's  horrid  resolve 


One  Minute's   Work.  319 

would  lead  one  to  think  ;  that  is  not  the  way 
that  Dr.  Vincent  feels  about  it ;  it  is  not  the  way 
that  Dr.  Pierce  preached  about  it  this  morning ; 
it  is  not  the  way  that  man  Bliss  sings  about  it. 
There  is  more  to  it  than  that.  My  father  had 
more  than  that.  If  he  could  only  look  down  to 
night  and  tell  me  whether  it  is  so,  whether  he  is 
safe  and  well  and  perfectly  happy.  Oh,  it 
seems  to  me  if  I  could  only  be  sure,  sure  be}*ond 
a  doubt  that  God  did  give  an  eternal  heaven  to 
my  father,  I  could  love  him  forever  for  doing 
that,  even  though  there  is  a  hell  and  I  go  to  it." 

Within  the  tent  they  were  having  talk  that 
would  seem  to  amount  to  very  little.  Even 
Eurie  appeared  to  be  subdued,  and  to  have  al 
most  nothing  to  say.  Ruth  was  roused  from  the 
half  stupor  of  astonishment  into  which  Marion's 
unexpected  words  had  thrown  her  by  hearing 
Flossy  say,  "Oh,  Ruth,  I  forgot  to  tell  }~ou 
something  ;  Mrs.  Smythe  stopped  at  the  door  on 
Saturday  evening  before  you  came  home ;  her 
party  leave  for  Saratoga  tomorrow  morning,  and 
she  wanted  to  know  whether  any  of  us  would 
go  with  them." 

"Did  you  tell  her  I  was  going? "  Ruth  asked, 


320  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

quickly.  It  was  utterly  distasteful  to  her  to 
think  of  having  Mrs.  Smythe's  company.  She 
did  not  stop  to  analyze  her  feelings;  she  simply 
shrank  from  contact  with  Mrs.  Smythe  and  from 
others  who  were  sure  to  be  of  her  stamp. 

"No,"  Flossy  said,  "I  did  not  know  what  you 
had  decided  upon ;  I  said  it  was  possible  that 
you  might  want  to  go,  but  some  one  joined  us 
just  then  and  the  conversation  changed :  I  did 
not  think  of  it  again." 

"  I  am  glad  you  didn't,"  Ruth  said,  emphatic 
ally.  "  I  don't  want  her  society.  I  won't  go 
in  the  morning  if  I  am  to  be  bored  with  that 
party ;  I  would  rather  wait  a  week." 

"  They  are  going  in  the  morning  train,"  Eurie 
said ;  "  I  heard  that  tall  man  who  sometimes 
leads  the  singing  say  so.  He  said  there  was 
quite  a  little  party  to  go,  among  them  a  party 
from  Clyde,  who  were  en  route  for  Saratoga. 
That  is  them,  you  know ;  nearly  ail  of  them  are 
from  Clyde.  '  Oh,  yes,'  the  other  man  said ; 
4  we  must  expect  that.  Of  course  there  is  a 
froth  to  all  these  things  that  must  evaporate  to 
ward  Saratoga,  or  some  other  resort.  There  is  a 
class  of  mind  that  Chautauqua  is  too  much  for.' 


One  Minute's   Work.  321 

Think  of  that,  Ruthie,  to  be  considered  nothing 
but  froth  that  is  to  evaporate  !  " 

"  Nonsense  !  "  Ruth  said,  sharply.  She  seemed 
to  consider  that  an  unanswerable  argument,  and 
in  a  sense  it  is.  Nevertheless  Eurie's  words  had 
their  effect ;  she  began  to  wish  that  letter  un 
written,  and  to  wish  that  she  had  not  said  so 
much  about  Saratoga,  and  to  wish  that  there 
was  some  quiet  way  of  changing  her  plans. 

In  fact,  an  utter  distaste  for  Saratoga  seemed 
suddenly  to  have  come  upon  her.  Conversation 
pulled  after  this ;  Marion  came  in,  and  the  four 
made  ready  for  the  night  in  almost  absolute 
silence.  The  next  thing  that  occurred  was  suf 
ficiently  startling  in  its  nature  to  arouse  them 
all.  It  was  one  of  those  sudden,  careless  move 
ments  that  this  life  of  ours  is  full  of,  taking  only 
a  moment  of  time,  and  involving  consequences 
that  reached  away  beyond  time,  and  death,  and 
resurrection. 

"  Eurie,"  Ruth  had  said,  "  where  is  your  head  • 
ache  bottle  that  you  boast  so  much  of?  I  be 
lieve  I  am  going  to  have  a  sick  headache." 

"In  my  satchel,"  Eurie  answered,  sleepily. 
She  was  already  in  bed.  "  There  is  a  spoon  on 
that  box  in  the  corner;  take  a  tea-spoonful." 


322  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

Another  minute  of  silence,  then  Eurie  suddenly 
raised  her  head  from  the  pillow  and  looked 
about  her  wildly.  The  dim  light  of  the  lamp 
showed  Ruth,  slowly  pulling  the  pins  from  her 
hair. 

uDid  you  take  it?"  she  asked,  and  her  voice 
was  full  of  eager,  intense  fright.  "Ruth,  you 
didn't  take  it !  " 

"  Yes,  I  did,  of  course.  What  is  the  matter 
with  you  ?  " 

"It  was  the  wrong  bottle.  It  was  the  lini 
ment  bottle  in  my  satchel.  I  forgot.  Oh, 
Ruth,  Ruth,  what  will  we  do  ?  It  is  a  deadly 
poison." 

Then  to  have  realized  the  scene  that  followed 
you  should  have  been  there  to  see.  Ruth  gave 
one  loud  shriek  that  seemed  to  re-echo  through 
the  trees,  and  Eurie's  moan  was  hardly  less  ter 
rible.  Marion  sprang  out  of  bed,  and  was  alert 
and  alive  in  a  moment. 

"  Ruth,  lie  down ;  Eurie,  stop  groaning  and 
act.  What  was  it  ?  Tell  me  this  instant." 

"  Oh,  I  don't  know  what  it  was,  only  he  said 
that  ten  drops  would  kill  a  person,  and  she  took 
a  tea-spoonful." 

"  I  know  where  the  doctor's  cottage  is,"  said 


One  Minute's   Work.  323 

Flossy,  dressing  rapidly.  "I  can  go  for  him." 
And  almost  as  soon  as  the  words  were  spoken 
she  had  slipped  out  into  the  darkness. 

Ruth  had  obeyed  the  imperative  command  of 
Marion"  and  laid  herself  on  the  bed.  She  was 
deadly  pale,  and  Eurie,  who  felt  eagerly  for  her 
pulse,  felt  in  vain.  Whether  it  was  gone,  or 
whether  her  excitement  was  too  great  to  find  it, 
she  did  not  know.  Meantime,  Marion  fumbled 
in  Flossy's  trunk  and  came  toward  them  with  a 
bottle. 

"  Hold  the  light,  Eurie  ;  this  is  Flossy's  hair- 
oil.  I  happen  to  know  that  it  is  harmless,  and 
oil  is  an  antidote  for  half  the  poisons  in  the 
world.  Iluth,  swallow  this  and  keep  up  cour 
age  ;  we  will  save  you." 

Down  went  the  horrid  spoonful,  and  Marion 
was  eagerly  at  work  chafing  her  limbs  and  rub 
bing  her  hands,  hurrying  Eurie  meantime  who 
had  started  for  the  hotel  in  search  of  help  and 
hot  water. 

That  dreadful  fifteen  minutes!  Not  one  of 
them  but  that  thought  it  was  hours.  They 
never  forgot  the  time  when  they  fought  so  cou 
rageously,  and  yet  so  hopelessly,  with  death. 


824  Four  G-irls  at  Chautauqua. 

Ruth  did  not  seem  to  grow  worse,  bat  she 
looked  ghastly  enough  for  death  to  have  churned 
her  for  his  victim ;  and  Flossy  did  not  return. 
Eurie  came  back  to  report  a  fire  made  and 
water  heating,  and  seizing  a  pail  was  about  to 
start  again,  when  her  eye  caught  the  open 
satchel,  and  a  bottle  quietly  reposing  there, 
closely  corked  and  tied  over  the  top  with  a  bit 
of  kid ;  she  gave  a  scream  as  loud  as  the  first  had 
been. 

"What  is  the  matter  now?"  Marion  said. 
"Eurie,  do  have  a  little  common  sense." 

"  She  didn't  take  it !  "  burst  forth  Eurie.  "  It 
is  all  a  mistake.  It  was  the  right  bottle.  Here 
is  the  other,  corked,  just  as  I  put  it." 

Before  this  sentence  was  half  concluded  Ruth 
was  sitting  up  in  bed,  and  Marion,  utterly  over 
come  by  this  sudden  revulsion  of  feeling,  was 
crying  hysterically.  There  is  no  use  in  trying 
to  picture  the  rest  of  that  excitement.  Suffice 
it  to  say  that  the  events  of  the  next  hour  are  not 
likely  to  be  forgotton  by  those  who  were  con 
nected  with  them.  Eurie  came  back  to  her 
senses  first,  and  met  and  explained  to  the  people 
who  had  heard  the  alarm,  and  were  eagerly 


One  Minute's   Work.  325 

gathering  with  offers  of  help.  There  was  rnuch 
talk,  and  many  exclamations  of  thankfulness  and 
much  laughter,  and  at  last  everything  was  grow 
ing  quiet  again. 

"I  can  not  find  the  doctor,"  Flossy  had  re 
ported  in  despair.  "  He  has  gone  to  May ville, 
but  Mr.  Roberts  will  be  here  in  a  minute  with  a 
remedy,  and  he  is  going  right  over  to  May  ville 
for  the  doctor." 

"Don't  let  him,  I  beg,"  said  Marion,  who  was 
herself  again.  u  There  is  nothing  more  formida 
ble  than  a  spoonful  of  your  hair-oil.  I  don't 
know  but  the  poor  child  needs  an  emetic  to  get 
rid  of  that.  Eurie,  my  dear,  can't  you  impress 
it  on  those  dear  people  that  we  don't  want  any 
hot  water  ?  I  hear  the  fourth  pail  coming." 

It  was  midnight  before  this  excited  group  set 
tled  down  into  anything  like  quiet.  But  the 
strain  had  been  so  great,  and  the  relief  so  com 
plete,  that  a  sleep  so  heavy  that  it  was  almost  a 
stupor  at  last  held  the  tired  workers. 

Now,  what  of  it  all  ?  Why  did  this  foolish 
mistake  of  bottles,  which  might  have  been  a 
tragedy,  and  was  nothing  but  a  causeless  excite 
ment,  reach  so  far  with  its  results  ? 


826  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

Let  me  tell  you  of  one  to  whom  sleep  did  not 
come.  That  was  the  one  who  but  half  an  hour 
before  had  believed  herself  face  to  face  with 
death!  What  mattered  it  to  her  that  it  was  a 
mistake,  and  death  no  nearer  to  her,  so  far  as 
she  knew,  than  to  the  rest  of  the  sleeping 
world  ? 

Death  was  not  annihilated  —  he  was  only  held 
at  bay.  She  knew  that  he  would  come,  and 
that  there  would  be  no  slipping  away  when  his 
hand  actually  grasped  hers.  She  believed  in 
death;  she  had  supposed  herself  being  drawn 
into  his  remorseless  grasp.  To  her  the  experi 
ence,  so  far  as  it  had  led  Lyr,  was  just  as  real  as 
though  there  had  been  no  mistake. 

And  the  result?  She  had  been  afraid!  All 
her  proper  resolutions,  so  fresh  in  her  mind, 
made  only  that  very  afternoon,  had  been  of  no 
more  help  to  her  than  so  much  foam.  She  had 
not  so  much  as  remembered  in  her  hour  of  terror 
whether  there  was  a  church  to  join.  But  that 
there  was  a  God,  and  a  judgment,  and  a  Savior, 
who  was  not  hers,  had  been  as  real  and  vivid  as 
she  thinks  it  ever  can  be,  even  when  she  stands 
on  the  very  brink. 


One  Minute's   Work.  327 

Oh,  that  long  night  of  agony!  when  she  tossed 
and  turned  and  sought  in  vain  for  an  hour  of 
rest.  She  was  afraid  to  sleep.  How  like  death 
this  sleeping  was!  Who  could  know,  when 
they  gave  themselves  up  to  the  grasp  of  this 
power,  that  he  was  not  the  very  death  angel 
himself  in  disguise,  and  would  give  them  no 
earthly  awakening  forever  ? 

What  should  she  do?  Believe  in  religion? 
Yes.  She  knew  it  was  true.  What  then? 
What  had  Marion  said?  Was  that  all  true? 
Aye,  verily  it  was;  she  knew  that,  too.  Had 
she  not  stood  side  by  side  with  death  ? 

The  hours  went  bv  and  the  conflict  went  on. 
There  was  a  conflict.  Her  conscience  knew 
much  more  than  her  tongue  had  given  it  credit 
for  knowing  that  afternoon.  Oh,  she  had  seen 
Christians  who  had  done  more  than  join  the 
church  !  She  had  imagined  that  that  act  might 
have  a  mysterious  and  gradual  change  on  her 
tastes  and  feelings,  so  that  some  time  in  her  life, 
when  she  was  old,  and  the  seasons  for  her  were 
over,  she  might  feel  differently  about  a  good 
many  things. 

But  that  hour  of  waiting  for  the  messenger  of 


328  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

death,  who,  she  thought,  had  called  her,  hud 
swept  away  this  film.  "It  is  not  teaching  in 
Sunday -school,"  said  her  brain.  "  It  is  not  tract 
distributing ;  it  is  not  sewing  societies  for  the 
poor;  it  is  not  giving  or  going.  It  is  none  of 
these  things,  or  any  of  them,  or  all  of  them,  as 
the  case  may  be,  and  as  they  come  afterward. 
But  first  it  is  this  question  :  Am  I  my  own  mis 
tress  ?  do  I  belong  to  myself  or  to  God  ?  will  I 
do  as  I  please  or  as  he  pleases?  will  I  submit  my 
soul  to  him,  and  ask  him  to  keep  it  and  to  show 
me  what  to  do,  or  when  and  where  to  step  ?  " 

The  night  was  utterly  spent,  and  the  gray 
dawn  of  the  early  sweet  summer  morning  was 
breaking  into  the  grove,  and  still  Iluth  lay  \\  ith 
wide-open  eyes,  and  thought.  A  struggle  ?  Oh 
dear,  yes  !  Such  an  one  as  she  had  never  imag 
ined.  That  strong  will  of  hers,  which  had  led 
not  only  herself  but  others,  yield  it,  submit  to 
other  leadership,  always  to  question,  Is  this 
right?  can  I  go  here?  ought  I  to  say  that? 
What  a  thing  to  do!  But  it  involved  that; 
she  knew  it,  felt  it.  She  might  have  been  blind 
during  the  week  past,  but  she  was  not  deaf. 

How  they  surged  over  her,  the  sentences  from 


One  Minute's   Work.  329 

one  and  another  to  whom  she  had  listened ! 
They  were  not  at  play,  these  great  men.  What 
did  it  mean  but  that  there  was  a  life  hidden 
away,  belonging  to  Christ?  She  felt  no  love  in 
her  heart,  no  longing  for  love,  such  as  poor  little 
Flossy  had  yearned  for.  She  felt  instead  that 
she  was  equal  to  life  ;  that  the  world  was  suffi 
cient  for  her;  that  she  wanted  the  world;  but 
that  the  world  was  at  conflict  with  God,  and 
that  she  belonged  to  God,  and  that  she  should 
give  herself  utterly  into  his  hands. 

Moreover,  she  knew  there  was  coming  a  time 
when  the  world,  and  Saratoga,  and  the  season, 
with  its  pleasures,  would  not  do.  There  was 
grim  death  !  —  he  would  come.  She  could  not 
always  get  away.  He  was  coming  every  hour 
for  somebody  around  her.  She  must  —  yes,  she 
must  get  ready  for  him.  It  would  not  do  to  be 
surprised  again  as  she  had  been  surprised  last 
night.  It  was  not  becoming  in  Ruth  Erskine  to 
live  so  that  the  sound  of  death  could  palsy  her 
limbs  and  blanch  her  cheek  and  make  her  sLad- 
der  with  fear.  She  must  get  where  she  could 
say  calmly:  "Oh,  are  ym  here?  Well,  1  am 
ready." 


330 


Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 


It  was  just  as  the  sun  which  was  rising  in 
glory  forced  its  smiles  in  between  the  thick 
leaves  of  the  Chautauqua  birds'  nests,  and  set 
all  the  little  birds  in  a  twitter  of  delight,  that 
Ruth  raised  herself  on  her  elbow  and  said  aloud, 
and  with  the  force  that  conies" from  a  determined 
will  that  has  decided  something  in  which  there 
has  been  a  struggle : 

"Iwftdoit." 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

"  I'VE  BEEN  KEDEEMED." 

HAT  about  Saratoga?  "  was  Eurie's first 
query  as  she  awoke  to  life  and  talk 
again  on  that  summer  morning.  "  Do  you  think 
you  will  take  the  10 : 50  train,  Ruth  ?  " 

Ruth  gave  nothing  more  decided  than  a  wan 
smile  in  answer,  and  in  her  heart  a  wonder  as  to 
what  Eurie  would  think  of  her  if  she  could  have 
known  the  way  in  which  her  night  was  passed. 

"  She  is  more  likely  to  stay  in  bed,"  Marion 
said,  looking  at  her  critically.  "  You  will  never 
think  of  trying  to  travel  to-day,  will  you,  Ruth? 
Dear  me  !  how  you  look  !  I  have  always  heard 
that  hair  oil  was  weakening,  but  I  did  not  know 

(331) 


832  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

its  effects  were  so  sudden  and  disastrous !  "  And 
tlien  every  one  of  these  silly  girls  laughed.  The 
disaster  of  the  night  before  had  reached  its  irre 
sistibly  comic  side  —  to  them.  Only  Ruth  shiv 
ered  visibly  ;  it  was  not  fanny  to  her. 

It  was  a  very  eventful  day.  She  by  no  means 
relished  the  character  of  invalid  that  the  girls 
seemed  determined  ought  to  be  forced  upon  her, 
and  at  the  same  time  she  had  not  the  least  idea 
of  going  to  Saratoga.  Strangely  enough,  that 
desire  seemed  to  have  utterly  gone  from  her. 
She  had  not  slept  at  all,  but  she  arose  and  dressed 
herself  as  usual,  with  only  one  feeling  strong 
upon  her,  and  that  was  a  determination  to  carry 
out  the  decision  to  which  she  had  so  recently 
come,  and  she  had  not  the  least  idea  how  to  set 
to  work  to  carry  it  out.  She  went  with  the  rest 
to  the  large  tent  to  hear  Mrs.  Clark's  address  to 
primary  class  teachers. 

"  I'm  not  a  primary  class  teacher,  and  not 
likely  to  be,  but  I  am  a  woman,  and  gifted  with, 
the  natural  curiosity  of  that  sex  to  know  what  a 
woman  may  have  to  say  in  so  big  a  place  as  this. 
I  don't  see  how  she  dares  to  peep."  This  was 
Eurie's  explanation  of  her  desire  to  go  to  the  re 
ception. 


"I've  Been  Redeemed"  333 

Ruth  went  because  to  go  to  meeting  seemed 
to  be  the  wisest  way  that  she  knew  of  for  cany- 
ing  out  her  decision ;  and  a  good  time  she  had. 
She  had  not  imagined  that  teaching  primary 
classes  was  such  an  art,  and  involved  so  much 
time  and  brain  as  it  did.  She  listened  eagerly 
to  all  Mrs.  Clark  had  to  say ;  she  followed  her 
through  the  blackboard  lessons  with  surprise  and 
delight,  and  she  awoke  at  the  close  of  the  hour 
to  the  memory  that,  although  she  had  been  inter 
ested  as  she  had  not  imagined  it  possible  for  her 
to  be  on  such  a  theme,  she  had  done  nothing 
toward  her  determination  to  make  a  Christian  of 
herself,  and  that  she  knew  no  more  how  to  go  to 
work  than  before. 

"  When  I  do  find  out  how  to  be  one  I  know  I 
will  go  to  work  in  the  Sabbath-school ;  I  have 
changed  my  mind  on  that  point."  This  she  told 
herself  softly  as  they  went  back  to  dinner. 

It  was  a  strange  afternoon  to  her.  She  be 
came  unable  to  interest  herself  heartily  in  the 
public  services ;  her  own  heart  claimed  her 
thought.  It  was  noticeable  also  that  for  the  first 
einie  Chautauqua  chose  this  day  in  which  to  be 
saetaphysical  and  scientific,  to  the  exclusion  of 


334  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

personal  religion.  Not  that  they  were  irrelig 
ious,  not  that  they  for  a  moment  forgot  their  po 
sition  as  a  great  religious  gathering ;  but  there 
was  an  absence  of  that  intense  personal  element 
in  the  talk  which  had  so  offended  Ruth's  taste 
heretofore,  and  she  missed  it. 

She  wandered  aimlessly  up  and  down  the 
aisles,  listening  to  sentences  now  and  then,  and 
sighing  a  little.  They  were  eloquent,  they  were 
helpful ;  she  could  imagine  herself  as  being  in  a 
state  to  enjoy  them  heartily,  but  just  now  she 
wanted  nothing  so  much  as  to  know  what  to  do 
in  order  to  give  herself  a  right  to  membership 
with  that  great  religious  world.  Why  should 
Chautauqua  suddenly  desert  her  now  when  she  so 
much  needed  its  help  ? 

"  If  I  knew  a  single  one  of  these  Christian  peo 
ple  I  would  certainly  ask  them  what  to  do." 
This  she  said  talking  still  to  herself.  She  had 
come  quite  away  from  the  meeting,  and  was 
down  in  one  of  the  rustic  seats  by  the  lake  side. 
It  struck  her  as  very  strange  that  she  had  not  in 
timate  acquaintance  with  a  single  Christian. 
She  even  traveled  home  and  tried  to  imagine 
herself  in  conversation  on  this  subject  with  some 


"I've  Been  Redeemed"  335 

of  her  friends.  To  whcm  could  she  go?  Mr. 
Wayne  ?  Why,  he  wouldn't  understand  her  in 
the  least.  What  a  strange  letter  that  was  which 
she  wrote  him  !  Could  it  be  possible  that  it  was 
written  only  yesterday  ?  How  strange  that  she 
should  have  suggested  to  him  to  unite  with  the 
church!  How  strange  that  she  should  have 
thought  of  it  herself ! 

There  came  a  quick  step  behind  her,  and  a 
voice  said,  "  Good-evening,  Miss  Erskine."  She 
turned  and  tried  to  recall  the  name  that  belonged 
to  the  face  of  the  young  man  before  her. 

"  You  do  not  remember  me  ?  "  he  said,  inquir 
ingly.  "  I  was  of  the  party  who  went  to  James 
town  on  the  excursion." 

"  Oh,  Mr.  Flint,"  she  said,  smiling,  and  hold 
ing  out  her  hand.  "  I  beg  pardon  for  forgetting ; 
that  seems  about  a  month  ago." 

"  So  it  does  to  me  ;  we  live  fast  here.  Miss 
Erskine,  I  have  been  looking  for  your  party  ;  I 
couldn't  find  them.  Isn't  Miss  Shipley  in  your 
tent?  Yes,  I  thought  so.  Well,  I  want  to  see 
her  very  much.  I  have  something  to  tell  her 
that  I  know  will  give  her  pleasure.  Perhaps  you 
would  take  a  message  for  me.  I  want  her  to 


336  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

know  that  since  last  week,  when  she  told  me  of 
her  Friend  who  had  become,  so  dear  to  her,  I 
have  found  the  truth  of  it.  He  is  my  Friend 
now,  and  I  want  to  thank  her  for  so  impressing 
me  with  a  desire  to  know  him  that  I  could  not 
give  it  up." 

Ruth  looked  utterly  puzzled.  Something  in 
the  young  man's  reverent  tone,  when  he  used  the 
word  "  Friend,  "  suggested  that  he  could  mean 
only  the  Friend  for  whom  she  herself  was  in  look 
ing  ;  and  yet  —  Flossy  Shipley  !  What  had  she 
to  do  with  him? 

"  Do  you  mean,"  she  said,  hesitatingly,  and 
yet  eagerly,  for  if  he  indeed  meant  that  here 
was  one  for  whom  she  had  been  looking ;  "  do 
you  mean  that  you  have  become  a  Christian  ?  " 

"It  is  such  a  new  experience,"  he  said,  his 
face  flushing,  "  that  I  have  hardly  dared  to  call 
myself  by  that  name ;  but  if  to  be  a  Christian 
means  to  love  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  to 
have  given  one's  self,  body  and  soul,  to  Lis  ser 
vice,  why  then  I  am  assuredly  a  Christian." 

This  was  it.  There  was  no  time  to  be  lost. 
She  had  spent  one  night  of  horror,  she  could  not 
endure  another,  and  the  day  was  drawing  to  its 


«Tve  Been  Redeemed:'  337 

end.  To  be  sure  she  felt  no  terror  now,  but  the 
night  might  bring  it  back. 

"How  did  you  do  it?"  she  asked,  simply. 
"How?"  The  very  simplicity  of  the  question 
puzzled  him.  "  Why,  I  just  gave  myself  up  to 
his  keeping ;  I  resolved  to  take  a  new  road  and 
follow  only  where  he  led.  Miss  Shipley  was  the 
one  who  first  made  me  think  seriously  about 
this  matter ;  and  then  I  went  to  the  service  thnt 
evening,  and  everything  that  was  said  and  sung, 
was  said  and  sung  right  at  me.  I  was  just 
forced  into  the  belief  that  I  had  been  a  fool,  and 
I  wanted  to  be  something  else." 

"  Miss  Shipley  !  "  Ruth  said,  brought  back  by 
that  name  to  the  wonderment.  "  You  are  mis 
taken.  You  can  not  mean  Flossy.  She  isn't  a 
Christian  at  all.  She  never  so  much  as  thinks 
of  such  things." 

"  Oh,  you  are  mistaken."  He  said  it  eagerly 
and  positively.  "  On  the  contrary,  she  is  the 
most  earnest  and  straightforward  little  Christian 
that  I  ever  met  in  my  life.  Why,  I  never  had 
anything  so  come  to  my  soul  as  that  little  sen 
tence  that  she  said  about  having  found  a  '•Friend? 
I  know  it  is  the  same  one.  I  have  seen  her  with 


388  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

you  siDce,  but  not  near  enough  to  address.  Her 
name  is  Flossy ;  I  heard  her  called  so  that  day 
on  the  boat." 

"  Flossy  !  "  Ruth  said  it  again,  in  a  bewilder 
ing  tone,  and  rising  as  she  spoke.  "  I  am  going 
to  find  her ;  I  want  to  understand  this  mystery. 
I  will  give  her  your  message,  Mr.  Flint,  but  I 
think  there  is  a  mistake."  Saying  which  she 
bade  him  a  hasty  good-afternoon,  for  the  flutter 
of  a  scarlet  shawl  had  reached  her  eyes.  No 
one  but  Flossy  wore  such  a  wrap  as  that.  She 
wanted  to  see  her  at  once,  and  she  didnt  want 
Mr.  Charlie  Flint  to  be  along.  She  went  for 
ward  with  rapid  steps  to  meet  her,  and  slipping 
an  arm  within  hers,  they  turned  and  went  slowly 
back  over  the  mossy  path. 

"  Flossy,  I  want  you  to  tell  me  something.  I 
have  heard  something  so  strange ;  I  think  it  is 
not  so,  but  you  can  tell  me.  I  want  to  know  if 
you  think  you  are  a  Christian?  " 

I  wonder  if  Flossy  has  any  idea,  even  now, 
how  strangely  Ruth's  heart  beat  as  she  asked 
that  simple  question.  It  seemed  to  involve  a 
great  deal  to  her.  She  waited  for  the  answer. 

There    was  no   hesitation   and  no  indecision 


"  I've  Been  Redeemed:'  339 

about  Flossy's  answer.  Her  cheeks  took  a  pink 
tint,  but  her  voice  was  clear. 

"I  know  I  am,  Ruth.  I  do  not  even  have  to 
speak  with  hesitancy.  I  am  so  sure  that  Christ 
is  my  Friend,  and  I  grow  so  much  surer  of  it 
every  day,  that  I  can  not  doubt  it  any  more  than 
I  can  doubt  that  I  am  walking  down  this  path 
with  you." 

And  then,  again,  Ruth's  astonishment  was  in 
part  lost  in  that  absorbing  question : 

"  How  did  you  get  to  be  one  ?  " 

"  It  is  a  simple  Jittle  story,"  Flossy  said.  And 
then  she  began  at  the  beginning  and  told  her 
little  bit  of  experience,  fresh  in  her  heart,  dating 
only  a  few  days  back,  and  full  to  the  brim  with 
peace  and  gladness  to  her. 

"  But  I  don't  see,"  Ruth  said,  perplexed.  "  I 
don't  find  out  what  to  do.  I  want  to  be  told 
how  to  do  it,  and  none  of  you  tell  me  ;  you  seem 
to  have  just  resolved  about  it,  and  not  done  any 
thing.  I  have  gone  so  far  myself.  Such  a  night 
as  last  night  was,  Flossy !  Oh,  you  can  never 
imagine  it ! " 

And  then  she  told  her  story,  as  much  of  it  as 
could  be  told ;  of  the  horror  and  the  thick  dark- 


340  Four  G-irls  at  Chautauqua. 

ness  that  had  enveloped  her  she  could  only  hint. 

What  an  eager  flash  there  was  in  Flossy's 
bright  eyes  as  she  listened. 

"  When  you  said  that !  "  she  began,  eagerly, 
as  Ruth  paused.  "  When  you  said,  4 1  will  do 
it.'  What  then?  Did  you  feel  just  as  you  did 
before?" 

"  No,"  Ruth  said,  "  not  at  all.  The  night  had 
gone  by  that  time.  As  I  looked  about  me  I 
realized  that  it  was  daylight,  and  I  fancied  that 
my  feelings  were  the  result  of  a  highly  excited 
state  of  nerves.  But  the  resolve  was  not  to  be 
accounted  for  in  any  such  way.  I  meant  that. 
The  horror,  though,  of  which  I  had  been  telling 
you  was  quite  gone.  It  was  as  if  there  had  been 
a  fearful  storm,  with  the  constant  roll  of  thunder, 
and  suddenly  a  calm.  I  hadn't  the  least  feeling 
of  fear  or  dread,  and  I  haven't  had  all  day  ;  but 
to-night  I  may  have  the  very  same  experience." 

t%No,  you  will  not,"  Flossy*  said,  her  voice 
aglow  with  feeling  and  with  joy.  "  Oh,  Ruthie, 
Ruthie  !  There  is  no  night !  You  have  got  be 
yond"  it.  I  tell  you,  you  have  come  into  God's 
light!  And  isn't  it  blessed?  You  are  a  Chris 
tian  now." 


"Ive  Been  Redeemed:'  341 

"  But,"  protested  Ruth,  utterly  bewildered, 
"  I  do  not  understand  you,  and  I  don't  think  you 
understand  yourself.  In  what  way  am  I  differ 
ent  from  what  I  was  yesterday?  How  can  I  be 
lost  in  God's  sight  one  moment  and  accepted  the 
next  ?  " 

"  Easily ;  oh,  so  easily !  Don't  you  see  ?  Why, 
if  I  had  been  coaxing  you  for  a  year  to  give  me 
something,  and  you  had  steadily  refused,  but  if 
suddenly  you  had  said  to  me,  '  Yes.  I  will ;  I 
have  changed  my  mind;  I  will  give  it  to  }TOU,' 
wouldn't  there  be  a  difference  ?  Wouldn't  I 
know  that  I  was  to  have  it?  And  couldn't  I 
thank  you  then,  and  tell  you  how  glad  I  was, 
just  the  same  as  though  I  had  it  in  my  hand  ? 
It  is  a  poor  little  illustration,  Ruthie,  but  it  is 
true  that  God  has  been  calling  you  all  your  life, 
and  if  you  have  all  the  time  been  saying  '  No,' 
up  to  that  moment  when  you  said  solemnly, 
meaning  it  with  all  your  heart,  'I  will,'  I  tell 
you  it  makes  a  difference." 

I  can  not  describe  to  you  how  strangely  all 
this  sounded  to  Ruthie.  Up  to  this  moment  she 
had  not  realized  in  the  least  that  the  Lord  was 
asking  her  simply  for  a  decision,  and  that  hav- 


842  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

ing  solemnly  given  it,  the  work,  so  far  as  she  was 
concerned,  was  done,  and  the  new  relations  in 
stantly  commenced.  She  thought  it  over  —  that 
sudden  calming  of  heart  —  that  sense  of  resolve 
• —  of  determination,  so  strong,  and  yet  so  quiet. 
She  remembered  what  a  strange  day  it  had  been. 
How  she  had  tried  to  keep  before  her  mind  the 
horror  of  the  night,  and  had  not  been  able. 

She  went  on  talking  with  Flossy,  telling  her 
about  Charlie  Flint,  noticing  the  happy  tears 
that  glistened  in  Flossy's  eyes  as  she  received 
her  message,  taking  in  the  murmured  words, 
"  To  think  that  Christ  would  honor  such  a  fee 
ble  little  witnessing  as  that!"  and  realizing  even 
then  that  it  would  be  very  blessed  to  have  one 
say  to  her,  "  You  have  been  the  means  of  lead 
ing  me  to  think  about  this  thing."  Why  should 
she  care,  though,  whether  people  thought  about 
this  thing  or  not  ?  Yesterday  she  didn't.  Dur 
ing  all  the  talk  she  kept  up  this  little  undertone 
of  thought,  this  running  commentary  on  her  sud 
den  change  of  views  and  feelings,  and  wondered, 
and  wondered,  could  it  be  possible  that  she  was 
utterly  changed?  And  yet,  when  she  came  to 
think  of  it,  wasn't  she  ?  Didn't  she  love  Christ  ? 


"  I've  Been  Redeemed."  343 

And  then  it  struck  her  as  the  strangest  thing  in 
the  world  not  to  love  him.  How  could  any  one 
be  so  devoid  of  heart  as  that?  Why,  a  mere 
man,  to  have  done  one-half  of  what  Christ  had 
done  for  her,  would  have  received  undying  love 
and  service. 

As  they  walked  they  neared  the  stand,  and 
there  came  just  at  that  moment  a  burst  of  music, 
one  of  those  strange,  thrilling  tunes  such  as  none 
but  the  African  race  ever  sing.  The  words 
were  familiar,  and  yet  to  Ruth  they  were  new  : 

"  There  is  a  fountain  filled  will  blood, 

Drawn  from  Immanuel's  veins, 
And  sinners,  plunged  beneath  that  flood, 
Lose  all  their  guilty  stains." 

A  sinner  I  Was  she,  Ruth  Erskine,  a  sinner? 
Yesterday  she  had  not  liked  it  to  be  called  a 
prodigal.  Bat  to-day,  oh  yes.  Was  there  a 
greater  sinner  to  be  found  than  she?  Plow  long 
she  had  known  this  story !  How  long  she  had 
known  and  believed  of  a  certainty  that  Jesus 
Christ  lived  and  died  that  she  might  have  salva 
tion,  and  yet  she  had  never  in  her  life  thanked 
him  for  it !  Nay,  she  had  spurned  and  scorned 


844  Four  G-irls  <tt  Chautauqua. 

his  gift !  So  much  worse  than  though  she  had 
not  believed  it  at  all !  For  then  at  least  she 
could  not  have  been  said  to  have  met  him  with 
the  insult  of  indifference. 

Then  the  chorus  swelled  out  on  the  still  air. 
Only  those  who  heard  it  under  the  trees  at 
Chautauqua  have  the  least  idea  how  it  sounded ; 
only  those  who  hear  it,  as  Ruth  Erslune  did,  can 
have  the  least  idea  how  it  sounded  to  her. 

"I've  been  redeemed,  I've  been  redeemed  !  " 

Over  and  over  the  strain  repeated.  Now  in 
clear  soprano  tones,  and  anon  rolled  out  from 
the  grand  bass  voices.  And  then  the  swelling 
unison: 

"  I've  been  redeemed  — 
Been  washed  in  the  blood  of  the  Lamb." 

The  girls  had  stopped,  and  almost  held  their 
breaths  to  listen.  They  stood  in  silence  while 
verse  after  verse  with  its  triumphant  swell  of 
chorus  rolled  out  to  them.  The  great  tears 
gathered  slowly  in  Ruth's  eyes,  until,  as  the  last 
echo  died  away,  she  turned  to  Flossy,  and  her 
voice  was  clear  and  triumphant: 


Been  Redeemed."  345 

"  I  believe  I  have.  Flossy,  I  believe  I  have. 
It  is  a  glorious  thought,  and  a  wonderful  one. 
It  almost  frightens  me.  And  yet  it  thrills  me 
with  perfect  delight.  The  fountain  is  deep 
enough  for  us  all  —  for  them  and  for  me.  I 
have  "  been  redeemed,"  and  if  God  will  help  me 
I  will  never  forget  it  again." 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 


SWOED  "THEUSTS. 


,  Y  the  next  morning  it  became  clear  to  our 
'girls  that  a  change  of  programme  was  a 
necessity.  Ruth  had  by  no  means  recovered 
from  her  shock  and  the  sleepless  night  that  fol 
lowed,  and  some  of  the  comforts  of  invalidism 
must  be  found  for  her.  At  the  same  time  she 
utterly  repudiated  the  idea  of  Saratoga,  which 
was  now  urged  upon  her  ;  it  had  lost  its  charms ; 
neither  would  she  go  home. 

"  I   have   decided  to  stay   until  the   very  last 

meeting,"  she  said,  with  quiet  determination. 
(346) 


Sword  Thrusts.  347 

Flossy  laughed  softly  ;  she  knew  what  charms 
Chautauqua  had  taken  on,  but  the  others  sup 
posed  it  to  be  a  whim,  resulting  from  the  ridicule 
she  had  suffered  because  of  the  Saratoga  scheme. 

After  many  plans  were  discussed  it  was  finally 
decided  that  Flossy  and  Ruth  should  seek  quar 
ters  at  the  hotel  in  Mayville,  Ruth  coming  over 
to  the  meetings  only  when  her  strength  and  her 
fancy  dictated,  and  haying  some  of  the  luxuries 
of  home  about  her.  It  seemed  to  fall  naturally 
to  Flossy 's  lot  to  accompany  her  ;  indeed,  a  bar 
rier  was  in  the  way  of  either  of  the  others  being 
chosen.  The  hotel  arrangement,  when  one  took 
into  consideration  the  numerous  boat-rides  to  and 
from  the  ground,  was  by  no  means  an  econom 
ical  proceeding,  and  as  Flossy  and  Ruth  were  the 
only  ones  who  were  entirely  indifferent  to  the 
demands  of  their  purses,  it  must  of  necessity  be 
them. 

Neither  of  them  was  disposed  to  demur ;  there 
had  never  been  much  congeniality  between  these 
two,  but  they  had  been  friendly,  and  now  there 
was  a  subtle  bond  of  sympathy  which  made  them 
long  to  be  together.  So,  during  the  next  morn 
ing  hours,  those  two  were  engaged  in  packing 


348  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

their  effects  and  preparing  for  a  flitting  to  the 
Mayville  House.  Meantime  Marion  and  Eurie, 
having  stood  ardund  and  looked  on  until  they 
were  tired,  departed  in  search  of  something  to 
interest  them. 

"It  is  too  early  for  meeting,"  Marion  said. 
"  There  is  nothing  of  interest  until  1 1  o'clock. 
I'm  sorry  we  missed  Mrs.  Clark.  1  like  to.  look 
at  her  and  listen  to  her ;  she  is  just  bubhliug 
over  with  enthusiasm.  One  can  see  that  she 
thinks  she  means  it.  If  I  were  a  Sunday-school 
teacher  I  should  be  glad  I  was  here,  to  hear  her. 
I  think  it  has  been  about  the  most  helpful  thing 
I  have  heard  thus  far;  helpful  to  those  who  in 
dulge  in  that  sort  of  work,  I  mean." 

"  I  wonder  what  those  normal  classes  are  like  ?  " 
Eurie  said,  studying  her  programme.  "We 
haven't  been  to  one  of  those,  have  we  ?  What 
do  you  suppose  they  do  ?  " 

Marion  shrugged  her  shoulders. 

"  They  are  like  work,"  she  said.  " '  Working 
hours,'  they  are  named  ;  and  I  suppose  some  hard 
thinking  is  done.  If  I  didn't  have  to  teach 
school  six  hours  out  of  every  day  at  home  I 
might  be  tempted  to  go  in  and  listen  to  them ; 


Sword  TJirusts.  849 

but  I  came  here  to  play,  you  see,  and  to  make 
money;  they  are  not  good  to  report  about.  Peo 
ple  who  stay  at  home  and  read  the  reported  let 
ters  don't  want  to  hear  any  thing  about  the  actual 
work ;  they  want  to  know  who  the  speaker  was 
and  how  he  looked,  and  whether  his  gestures 
were  graceful,  and  —  if  it  is  a  lady  —  above  all, 
how  she  was  dressed  ;  if  they  say  anything  re 
markably  sarcastic  or  irresistibly  funny  you  may 
venture  to  report  it,  but  not  otherwise,  conse 
quently  reporting  is  easy  work,  if  }~ou  have  not 
too  much  conscience,  because  what  you  didn't 
see  you  can  make  up. 

At  the  end  of  this  harangue  she  paused  sud 
denly  before  a  tent,  whence  came  the  sound  of  a 
firm  and  distinct  voice. 

"  What  is  this  ?  "  she  said,  and  then  she  lifted  a 
bit  of  the  canvas  and  peeped  in.  "  I'm  going  in 
here,  after  all,"  she  said,  withdrawing  her  head 
and  explaining.  "  This  is  a  normal  class,  I  guess. 
That  man  from  Philadelphia  —  what  is  his  name  ? 
Tyler?  Yes,  that  is  it  —  J.  Bennet  Tyler—  is 
leading.  I  like  him ;  I  like  his  voice  ever  so 
much  ;  he  makes  you  hear,  whether  you  want  to 


350  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

or  not.  Then,  somewa}T,  you  get  a  kind  of  a  no 
tion  that  lie  not  only  believes  what  he  say*  but 
that  he  knows  it  is  so,  and  that  is  all  there  is 
about  it.  I  like  to  meet  such  people  now  and 
then,  because  they  are  so  rare.  Generally  peo 
pie  act  as  though  you  could  coax  them  out  of 
their  notions  in  about  twenty  minutes  if  you 
tried  —  when  they  are  talking  about  religious 
subjects,  I  mean.  Obstinacy  is  not  so  rare  o 
trait  where  other  matters  are  concerned.  LetV 
go  in." 

"  What  is  the  subject  this  morning  ?  "  Etirie 
asked,  following  her  guide  around  to  the  entrance, 
somewhat  reluctantly.  She  was  in  no  mood  for 
shutting  herself  inside  a  tent,  and  being  obliged 
to  listen  whether  she  wanted  to  or  not.  But 
Marion  was  in  one  of  her  positive  moods  this 
morning,  and  must  either  be  followed  or  deserted 
altogether. 

Mr.  Tyler  was  reading  from  a  slip  of  paper  as 
they  entered.  This  was  the  sentence  he  read: 

"  Difficulties  in  interpretation  which  arise  from 
certain  mental  peculiarities  of  the  student.  Some 
minds,  and  not  by  any  means  the  strongest  or 


Sword  Thrusts.  351 

noblest,  must  always  see  the  reason  for  every 
thing." 

Marion  gave  Eurie  a  sagacious  nod  of  the 
head. 

"  Don't  you  see  ?  "  she  said.  "  Now,  by  the 
peculiar  way  in  which  he  read  that,  he  made  be 
lieve  it  was  me  he  meant.  And,  by  the  way,  I'm 
not  sure  but  he  is  correct.  1  must  say  that  I 
like  a  reason  for  things.  But  what  right  has  he 
to  say  that  that  is  an  indication  of  a  weak  mind?  " 

"  He  didn't  say  so,"  whispered  Eurie. 

"  Oh,  yes  he  did  ;  it  amounted  to  that.  There 
is  where  his  peculiar  use  of  words  comes  in. 
Thaf  man  has  studied  words  until  he  handles 
them  as  if  they  were  foot-balls,  and  were  to  go 
exactly  where  he  sent  them." 

"  He  is  looking  this  way.  The  next  thing  you 
know  he  will  throw  some  at  us  for  whispering." 

This  was  Eurie's  attempt  to  quiet  Marion's 
tongue.  That  or  some  other  influence  had  the 
desired  effect.  She  whispered  no  more,  and  it 
was  apparent  in  a  very  few  minutes  that  she  had 
become  intensely  interested  in  the  theme  and  in 
the  way  it  was  being  handled.  An  eager  exam 
ination  of  the  programme  disclosed  what  she  be- 


352  Four  G-irls  at  Chautauqua. 

gaii  to  suspect,  that  the  subject  was,  "  Difficul 
ties  in  the  Bible."  Her  intellectual  knowledge 
of  the  Bible  was  considerable  ;  and  having  read  it 
ever  since  she  could  remember,  with  the  express 
purpose  of  finding  difficulties,  it  was  not  surpris 
ing  that  she  had  found  them. . 

Something,  either  in  the  leaders  manner  of 
drawing  out  answers,  or  the  peculiar  emphasis 
with  which  he  contrived  to  invest  certain  words, 
had  the  effect  to  cause  Marion  to  feel  as  though 
she  had  been  very  superficial  in  her  reasoning 
and  childish  in  her  objections.  She  grew  eager  ; 
her  brain,  accustomed  to  work  rapidly  and  fol 
low  trains  of  thought  closely,  enjoyed  the  keen 
play  of  thought  that  was  being  drawn  forth. 

But  there  was  more  than  that ;  almost  uncon- 
ciously  to  herself  this  subject  was  assuming  vital 
proportions  to  her ;  she  did  not  even  herself  re 
alize  the  intensity  of  the  cry  in  her  heart,  "  If  I 
only  knew  whether  these  were  so  !  "  Presently 
the  voice  which  had  once  before  struck  her  as 
being  so  peculiar  in  its  personality  sounded  dis 
tinctly  down  the  long  tent. 

"  Remember  the  conditions  under  which  the 
Bible  promises  clear  apprehension  of  the  truth." 


Sword  Thrusts.  353 

It  chanced  —  at  least  that  is  the  way  in  which 
we  use  language  —  it  chanced  that  Mr.  Tyler's 
eyes  as  he  repeated  these  words  rested  on  Marion. 
Speaking  of  it  afterward  she  said  : 

"  So  far  as  the  impression  made  on  me  was  con 
cerned,  it  was  the  same  as  though  he  had  said : 
4  Do  you  understand  what  an  idiot  you  have  been 
not  to  take  that  cardinal  point  into  consideration 
at  all  ?  Open  your  Bible  and  read,  and  see  how 
like  a  weak-minded  babe  you  are.'  " 

Beside  her  lay  a  Bible  just  dropped  by  some 
one  who  had  been  called  out.  Following  out 
the  impulse  of  the  moment  she  turned  to  the  ref 
erence,  and  her  clear  voice  gave  it  distinctly  : 

"  If  any  man  will  do  his  will,  he  shall  know  of 
the  doctrine  whether  it  be  of  God  or  whether  I 
speak  of  myself.'* 

The  effect  of  this  simple,  straightforward  and 
reasonable  proposition,  on  sounding  back  to  her 
spoken  by  her  own  voice,  was  tremendous.  Very 
little  more  of  the  talk  did  she  hear.  A  thrust, 
from  God's  own  sword  had  reached  her.  What 
a  fool  she  had  been  !  What  right  had  she  to 
presume  to  give  an  opinion  before  applying  the 
test?  Had  not  the  most  common-place  state- 


354  Four   Crirls  at   Chautauqua. 

ments  a  right  to  be  tried  by  their  own  tests? 
Yet  she  had  never  given  this  simple  direction  a 
thought. 

So  this  was  the  Bible  promise  ?  "  He  shall 
know."  Not  that  these  things  are  so,  but  a  more 
logical,  more  satisfactory  statement  to  the  nat 
ural  heart.  He  shall  judge  for  himself  whether 
these  things  be  so  ;  follow  the  directions,  and 
then  judge  by  your  experiences  after  that 
whether  these  things  be  true  or  false.  Could 
anything  be  more  reasonable  ? 

"  I  shall  never  dare  to  say  that  I  don't  believe 
the  Bible  again,  for  fear  some  one  will  ask  me 
whether  I  have  applied  the  test,  and  if  I  have 
not  what  business  have  I  to  judge.  That  man 
now,  if  I  should  come  in  contact  with  him,  which 
I  shall  endeavor  not  to  do,  would  be  sure  to  ask 
me.  He  has  almost  the  same  as  asked  it  now, 
before  all  these  people.  He  has  a  mysterious 
way  of  making  me  feel  as  though  he  was  talking 
for  my  confusion  and  for  nobody  else." 

This  Marion  told  to  herself  as  she  eyed  the 
leader,  half  sullenly.  He  had  strangely  disturbed 
her  logic  and  set  her  refuge  in  ruins. 

"  Let's  go,"  she  said  suddenly  to  Eurie.     "  I 


Sword  Thrusts.  355 

am  tired  of  this ;  1  have  had  enough,  and  more 
than  enough."  But  the  hour  was  over,  and  she 
had  had  all  that  was  to  be  secured  from  that 
source. 

All  the  younger  portion  of  the  congregation 
seemed  to  be  rushing  back  up  the  lull  again,  and 
inquiry  developed  the  fact  that  Mrs.  Clark  was 
to  meet  the  primary  workers  in  the  large  tent. 
It  was  wonderful  how  many  people  chose  to  con 
sider  themselves  primary  workers?  At  least 
they  rushed  to  this  meeting,  a  great  army  of 
them,  as  though  their  one  object  in  life,  was  to 
learn  how  successfully  to  teach  the  little  ones. 
Our  girls  all  met  together  in  the  tent.  Ruth 
and  Flossy  had  finished  their  preparations,  but 
had  concluded  to  wait  until  afternoon  service. 

"  I  declare  if  you  are  not  armed  with  a  pencil 
and  paper.  Have  you  been  seized  with  a  mania 
for  taking  notes?"  This  Eurie  said  to  Iluth. 
"  Now  I'm  going  to  get  out  my  note  book  too. 
Here  is  a  card  —  it  will  hold  all  1  care  to  write 
1  dare  say.  Let  me  see,  who  knows  but  I  shall 
go  to  teaching  in  Sabbath-school  one  of  these 
days !  I  am  going  to  make  a  list  of  the  things 
which  according  to  Mrs.  Clark,  we  shall  need." 


356  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

True  to  her  new  fancy,  she  scribbled  industri 
ously  during  the  session,  and  showed  her  card 
with  glee  as  they  left  the  tent. 

"I've  a  complete  list,"  she  said.  "If  any  of 
you  go  into  the  business  I  can  supply  you  with 
the  names  of  the  necessary  tools.  Look  I 

"  A  blackboard. 

"  A  picture  roll. 

"  A  punch ! 

"  Cards. 

"  Brains  ! 

44  Blank  book. 

"  Children. 

"  More  brains  I 

"  That  last  item,"  she  said,  reflectively,  "  is  the 
hardest  to  find.  I  had  no  idea  so  much  of  that 
material  was  necessary.  Now  let  me  see  what  is 
on  your  papers."  This  even  Marion  stoutly  re 
sisted.  And  Flossy  quietly  hid  hers  in  her 
pocket,  saying  with  a  smile  : 

"  Mine  is  simply  a  list  of  things  needful  for 
such  work." 

If  she  had  shown  her  paper  it  would  have  as 
tonished  Eurie,  and  it  might  have  done  her  good. 
This  was  what  she  had  written  : 


Sword  Thrusts.  357 

"What  I  need  in  order  to  be  a  successful 
teacher. 

"Such  a  forgetfullness  of  self  as  shall  lead  me 
to  think  only  of  the  little  ones  and  their  needs, 

"  Such  a  love  for  Christ  as  shall  lead  me  to 
long  after  every  little  soul  to  lead  it  to  him." 

As  for  Marion  her  paper  contained  simply  this 
sentence,  carefully  written  out  in  German  text 
as  if  she  had  deliberated  over  each  letter ; 

"  If  any  man  will  do  his  will,  he  shall  know 
of  the  doctrine,  whether  it  be  of  God." 

They  went  in  a  body  to  hear  Dr.  Hatfield. 

"  I  want  that  lecture,"  Marion  said,  " ;  Perils 
of  the  Hour/  I'm  very  anxious  to  know  what 
my  peril  is.  I  know  just  what  is  hovering  over 
every  one  of  you,  but  I  can't  quite  make  up  my 
mind  as  to  my  own  state.  Perhaps  the  distin 
guished  gentleman  can  help  me." 

And  he  did.  He  had  selected  for  one  of  the 
perils  that  which  was  embodied  in  the  following 
ringing  sentence : 

"  The  third  peril  is  the  prevelancy  of  skeptic 
ism.  A  class  of  scientists  have  discovered  that 
there  is  no  God !  What  the  fool  said  in  his  heart 
they  proclaimed  on  the  house-top  !  " 


358  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

Eurie  looked  over  at  her,  smiling  and  mis 
chievous,  and  said  in  anything  but  a  softly  whis 
per,  "  That  means  you,  my  dear." 
>  But  Marion  did  not  hear  her;  she  was  ab 
sorbed  in  the  intense  scathing  sentences  that  fol 
lowed.  Of  one  thing  she  presently  felt  assured, 
that  whoever  was  right  or  whoever  was  wrong 
in  this  matter,  Dr.  Hatfield  believed  with  all  the 
intensity  of  an  intense  educated  intellect  that 
God  ruled.  Was  it  probable  that  he  had  met 
the  condition,  done  his  will,  and  so  knew  of  the 
doctrine  ?  That  was  an  hour  to  be  remembered. 
Eurie  ceased  to  whisper  or  to  frolic ;  there  was 
too  much  intensity,  about  the  speaker's  manner 
not  to  claim  her  attention.  She  listened  as  she 
was  not  in  the  habit  of  listening.  She  could 
give  you  a  detailed  account  even  now  of  that 
hour  of  thought;  so  could  I,  and  I  am  awfully 
tempted ;  but,  you  see,  it  is  only  Tuesday,  and 
the  girls  have  six  more  days  to  spend  at  Chau 
tauqua. 

Both  Ruth  and  Flossy  got  their  crumb  to 
think  over.  They  discussed  it  at  the  hotel  that 
evening. 

"  I  tell  you,  Flossy,  if  Dr.  Hatfield  is  correct 


Sword  Thrust*.  359 


you  and  I  have  tremendous  changes  to  make  in 
our  way  of  spending  the  Sabbath ;  and  I  have 
actually  prided  myself  on  the  way  in  which  I 
respected  the  day  !  " 

Aod  Ruth  laughed  as  if  that  were  so  strange 
a  thought,  now  that  it  was  hardly  possible  to 
think  that  she  could  have  entertained  it. 

"I  know,"  Flossy  said;  "and  he  can  not  but 
be  right,  for  he  proved  his  position.  I  am  glad 
I  heard  that  address.  But  for  him,  I  know  I 
should  never  have  thought  of  my  influence  in 
some  places  where  I  now  see  I  can  use  it.  Ruth 
you  will  be  struck  with  one  thing.  Now,  Chau- 
tauqua  is  like  what  Madame  C's  school  might 
have  been,  so  far  as  study  is  concerned.  Every 
day  I  have  a  new  lesson,  one  that  startles  me  so  I 
I  feel  'that  there  must  be  some  mistake,  or  I 
would  have  heard  of  or  thought  of  some  of  these 
things  before.  And  yet  they  sound  so  reason 
able  when  you  come  to  think  them  over,  that 
presently  I  am  surprised  that  I  have  not  felt 
them  before.  Ruthie,  do  you  think  Eurie  and 
Marion  have  any  interest  at  all  ?  " 

"No,"  said  Ruth,  positively,  "I  know  Marion 


360 


Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 


hasn't.     It  was  only  the  other  evening  that  she 
talked  more  wildly  if  anything  than  before." 

About  this  time  Marion,  alone  in  her  tent,  said 
again,  as  she  had  said  a  dozen  times  during  the 
last  few  days:  "If  I  only  knew!"  And  this 
time  she  added,  "  If  I  only  knew  how  to  know  I " 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

SEEMONS  IN  CHALK. 


OW,  see  here,  Marion  Wilbur,  wake  up 
and  give  me  your  attention.  I  want  to 
make  a  speech ;  I've  caught  the  infection.  It's 
queer  in  a  place  where  there  is  so  much  speech- 
making  done  that  I  can't  have  a  chance  to  ex 
press  my  views." 

"  I'm  all  attention,"  Marion  answered,  turning 
on  her  pillow,  and  giving  Eurie  a  sleepy  stare. 
"  What  has  moved  you  to  be  eloquent  ?  Give 
me  the  subject." 

"  The  subject  is  the  reflex  influence  of  preach- 
(361) 


862  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

ing  !  It  may  have  different  effects  on  different 
natures.  Its  eflect  on  mine  has  been  marked 
enough.  I'm  thoroughly  surfeited.  I  don't 
want  to  hear  another  sermon  while  I  am  here, 
and  I  don't  mean  to.  They  are  all  sermons. 
The  subject  may  be  scientific,  literary  or  artistic, 
and  it  amounts  to  the  same  thing ;  they  contrive 
to  row  around  to  the  same  spot  from  whatever 
point  they  start.  Now,  I  came  here  for  fun,  and 
I'm  being  literally  cheated  out  of  it.  So  the  ap 
plication  of  my  'remark  is,  I've  learned  since  I 
have  been  here  always  to  have  an  application  to 
everything,  and  this  time  it  is  that  I  won't  go 
any  more.  I've  studied  the  programme  care 
fully,  and  I  have  selected  just  what  I  am  going 
to  do.  That  Mrs.  Knox  has  a  reception  this 
morning.  I've  heard  about  her  before ;  she  is 
awfully  in  earnest,  and  awfully  good.  Oh,  I 
haven't  the  least  doubt  of  it ;  but,  you  see,  I 
don't  want  to  be  good,  nor  to  have  such  an  un 
comfortable  amount  of  goodness  about  me." 

"  She  is  said  to  be  one  of  the  most  successful 
Sabbath-school  teachers  here ;  and  I  heard  a 
gentleman  say  last  night  that  her  primary  class 
was  a  regular  training  school  for  young  ladies  in 


Sermons  in  Chalk.  363 

Christian   work.      You   know  she   has  ever  so 
many  teachers  under  her." 

"  I  can't  help  that.  I  ain  not  one  of  them,  I 
im  thankful  to  say.  What  do  I  care  whether 
she  is  successful  or  not  ?  That  won't  help  me 
my.  I  know  all  about  her.  They  say  the 
young  ladies  in  her  classes  are  invariably  con 
verted  before  they  have  been  under  her  in 
fluence  long.  So  if  you  want  to  be  converted 
you  have  only  to  go  to  Elmira  and  join  her 
class;  but  as  for  me,  I  am  not  in  the  mood  for 
•  that  experience  yet,  and  I  am  not  going  near 
her." 

"  What  are  you  going  to  do  then  ?  " 
"  Just  what  I  please !  That  is  what  I  came 
for.  Just  think  of  the  absurdity  of  we  four 
girls  rushing  to  meeting  at  the  rate  we  have 
been  doing  for  the  last  week.  What  do  you 
suppose  the  people  at  home  would  think  of  us  ? 
Why,  I  didn't  expect  to  hear  any  of  their  ser 
mons  when  I  came.  I  as  good  as  promised 
Flossy  that  I  would  frolic  about  with  her  all  the 
time,  and  now  the  absurd  little  dunce  acts  as  if 
she  were  under  a  wager  to  be  on  the  ground 
every  time  the  bell  rings  I  I've  declared  off.  I 


864  Four  G-irls  at  Chautauqua. 

• 
can  tell  you  to  an  item  just  what  I  am  going  to 

hear.  There  is  a  performance  to  come  off  this 
afternoon  some  time  that  I  shall  be  ready  for. 
I  loitered  behind  the  King  tent  last  night,  and 
heard  him  say  so.  That  Frank  Beard  is  going 
to  give  his  chalk  talk  —  caricatures :  that  I  shall 
hear,  and  especially  see.  It  will  be  hard  work 
to  poke  a  sermon  into  that.  I  guess  that  is  to 
be  this  afternoon ;  it  is  to  be  some  time  soon, 
anyway,  and  I  shall  watch  for  it.  Then  there  is 
to  be  another  extra.  Mrs.  Miller  is  going  to 
read  a  story.  I  can  give  you  the  title  of  it.  I. 
didn't  sit  on  that  horrid  stump  in  the  dark  lis 
tening  to  Dr.  Vincent  for  nothing.  It  is  to  be 
'  Three  Blind  Mice.'  Now  it  stands  to  reason 
that  a  story  with  such  a  title  will  not  be  very 
far  above  my  intellectual  capacit}^  and  it  can't 
very  well  develop  into  a  sermon,  or  close  with  a 
prayer-meeting.  Then  I'm  going  to  the  concert 
by  the  Tennesseeans ; '  their  jargon  won't  hurt 
me  ;  and,  of  course,  I  shall  attend  the  Presi 
dent's  reception.  I  must  have  a  stare  at  him  — 
and  that  is  every  solitary  meeting  I  am  going  to 
attend.  I've  heard  the  last  preaching  that  I 
mean  to  for  some  time." 


Sermons  in  Chalk.  365 

Now  this  was  what  Eurie  Mitchell  said.  Let 
me  tell  you  a  little  bit  about  what  she  thought. 
She  was  by  no  means  so  indifferent,  nor  so  bored 
as  she  would  have  Marion  understand.  She  was 
by  no  means  in  the  state  of  mind  that  Ruth  had 
been,  or  that  Marion  was.  No  doubts  as  to  the 
general  truth  of  all  the  vital  doctrines  of  Christ 
ianity  had  ever  troubled  her.  She  accepted 
without  question  the  belief  of  the  so-called 
Christian  World.  Neither  was  she  bewildered 
as  to  what  constituted  Christian  life.  No  vague 
notion  that  to  unite  herself  with  some  church 
would  let  her  into  the  charmed  circle  had  ever 
befogged  her  brain. 

On  the  contrary,  she  knew  better  than  many 
a  Christian  does  just  what  the  Christian  profes 
sion  involved,  and  just  how  narrow  a  path  ought 
to  be  walked  by  those  professing  to  follow 
Christ.  In  proportion  to  the  keenness  of  her 
sarcasm  over  blundering,  stumbling  Christians, 
had  her  eyes  been  open  to  what  they  ought  to 
be. 

There  was  just  this  the  matter  with  Eurie. 
She  knew  so  well  what  religious  professions  in 
volved  that  she  wanted  to  make  none.  She 


866  Four  G-irls  at  Chautauqua. 

hated  the  thought  of  self-abnegation,  of  bridling 
her  eager  tongue,  of  going  only  where  her  en 
lightened  conscience  said  a  Christian  should  go, 
of  looking  out  for  and  calling  after  others  to  go 
with  her.  She  wished  deliberately  to  ignore  ifc 
all.  Not  forever,  she  would  have  been  shocked 
at  the  thought.  Some  time  she  meant  to  give 
intense  heed  to  these  things,  and  then  indeed 
the  church  should  see  what  a  Christian  could  be ! 
But  not  now. 

There  were  a  hundred  things  laid  down  in  her. 
programme  for  the  coming  winter  that  she  knew 
perfectly  well  were  not  the  things  to  do  or  say, 
provided  she  were  a  Christian,  and  she  deliber 
ately  wished  to  avoid  the  fear  of  becoming  one. 
Just  here  she  was  afraid  of  the  influence  of 
Chautauqua. 

How  was  it  possible  to  attend  these  meetings, 
to  listen  to  these  daily,  hourly  addresses,  teeming 
either  directly  or  indirectly  with  the  same 
thought,  personal  consecration,  without  feeling 
herself  drawn  within  the  circle?  She  would 
not  be  drawn.  This  was  her  deliberate  conclu 
sion,  therefore  her  determination. 

It  was  almost  well  for  her  that  she  could  not 


Sermons  in  Chalk.  367 

realize  on  what  fearfully  dangerous  ground  she 
was  treading  !  I  wonder  if  those  over  whom 
the  Lord  says,  "  Let  them  alone,"  are  ever  con 
scious  at  the  time  that  the  order  has  gone  forth, 
and  that  they  are  to  feel  their  consciences  press 
ing  home  this  matter  no  more  ? 

"  Well,"  said  Marion,  after  turning  this  resolu 
tion  over  in  her  mind  for  a  few  minutes,  "  I  dare 
say  you  will  lose  a  good  many  things  worth  hear 
ing  ;  but  I  have  nothing  to  do  with  that — only  I 
want  you  to  go  with  me  up  to  hear  Mrs.  Knox 
this  morning.  I've  got  to  go,  for  I  promised  es 
pecially  to  report  her  for  the  teachers  at  home, 
and  it  is  stupid  to  go  alone.  She  won't  preach, 
and  she  won't  bore  you,  and  I  want  you  to  help 
me  remember  items." 

So,  much  against  her  will,  Eurie  was  coaxed 
into  this  departure  from  her  programme,  and 
came  back  from  the  meeting  in  intense  disgust. 

"Talk  about  her  not  preaching,"  she  said,  vent 
ing  her  annoyance  on  Marion  \vhile  she  energet 
ically  brushed  her  hair.  "Every  fold  of  her 
dress  preached  a  sermon  !  She  makes  me  ache 
all  over,  she  is  so  powerfully  in  earnest ;  and  didn't 
she  hint  what  angels  of  goodness  those  girls  of 


368  Four  Girls  at  Cliautauqua. 

hers  were  —  those  teachers!  I'd  like  to  know 
how  they  could  be  anything  else  but  good  \\  ith 
such  an  example  at  hand.  Just  think,  Marion, 
of  having  the  brains  that  that  woman  has,  and 
the  energy  and  tact  and  the  skill  of  a  general, 
and  then  forcing  it  into  a  Sunday-school  class 
room  for  the  teaching  of  a  hundred  little  dots 
that  have  just  tumbled  out  of  their  cradles !  " 

"  Well,  if  she  teaches  them  to  tumble  out  on 
the  right  side  so  that  they  will  come  up  grand 
men  and  women,  what  then  ?  Isn't  that  an  am 
bition  worthy  of  her  ?  " 

"  Stuff  and  nonsense  !  Don't  you  go  to  preach 
ing.  I  shall  go  and  drown  myself  in  the  lake  if 
I  hear  any  more  of  it,  and  then  one  worthless 
person  will  be  out  of  the  way.  But  don't  you 
dare  to  ask  nae  to  go  and  hear  that  woman  again ! 
I  won't  give  up  my  plans  in  life  for  hers,  and 
she  needn't  hint  it  to  me.  And,  Marion  Wilbur, 
I  am  not  going  to  listen  to  another  man  or  woman 
who  has  the  least  chance  to  fire  words  right  a.t 
me  —  now  mark  my  words." 

Full  of  this  determination  she  carried  it  out 
during  the  afternoon,  until  the  hour  for  Frank 
Beard's  caricatures  ;  then,  secure  from  fear  of 


Sermons  in  Chalk.  369 

a  sermon,  she  came  gayly  down  and  considered 
herself  fortunate  to  secure  a  seat  directly  in 
front  of  the  stand  and  in  full  view  of  the  black 
board.  If  you  have  never  seen  Frank  Beard 
make  pictures  you  know  nothing  about  what  a 
good  time  she  had.  They  were  such  funny  pict 
ures  ! — just  a  few  strokes  of  the  magic  era}- on 
and  the  character  described  would  seem  to  start 
into  life  before  you,  and  you  would  feel  that  you 
could  almost  know  what  thoughts  were  passing 
in  the  heart  of  the  creature  made  of  chalk.  Eu- 
rie  looked,  and  listened,  and  laughed.  The  old 
deacon  who  thought  the  Sunday-school  was  be 
ing  glorified  too  much  had  his  exact  counterpart 
among  her  acquaintances,  so  far  as  his  looks 
were  concerned.  The  three  troublesome  Sun 
day-school  scholars  fairly  convulsed  her  by  their 
life-like  appearance.  There  was  the  little  scamp 
of  a  boy  who  was  revealed  by  the  dozen  to  any 
one  who  took  a  walk  down  town  toward  the  close 
of  the  day ;  the  argumentative  old  man,  with 
his  nose  pointing  out  a  flaw  in  your  reasoning  or 
on  the  keen  scent  for  a  mistake ;  and  the  pert 
fourteen-year-old  girl  whose  very  nose,  as  it 


370  Four  Girls  at  Cliautauqua. 

slightly  turned  upward,  showed  that  she  knew 
more  than  all  the  logicians  and  theologians  in  the 
world. 

This  entertainment  was  exactly  in  Eurie's  line. 
If  there  was  anything  in  the  world  that  she  was 
an  adept  at  it  was  looking  up  weak  points  in  the 
characters  of  other  people  ;  and  when  the  silly 
girl  with  but  two  ideas  —  one  of  them  bows  and 
the  other  beaux  —  lived  and  breathed  before  her 
on  the  blackboard  her  delight  reached  its  climax. 

"  She  is  the  very  picture  of  Nettie  Arnold  !  " 
she  whispered  to  Marion.  "  When  I  go  home  I 
mean  to  tell  her  that  her  photograph  was  dis 
played  at  Cliautauqua.  She  is  just  vain  enough 
to  believe  it !  " 

Still  the  fun  went  on.  Just  a  few  bold,  rapid 
strokes,  and  some  caricature  breathed  before 
them,  so  real  that  the  character  was  guessed  be 
fore  the  explanation  was  given,  and  the  ground 
rang  with  continued  and  overpowering  roars  of 
laughter. 

Into  the  midst  of  this  entertainment  came  Dr. 
Vincent,  his  face  aglow  with  the  exertion  of 
heaity  laughter,  every  feature  of  it  expressive  of 


Sermons  in  ChaUc.  371 

his  hearty  appreciation  of  this  hour  of  recreation ^ 
and  yet  every  feature  alive  and  alert  with  a 
higher  and  more  enduring  feeling. 

"  Frank,"  he  said,  laying  a  friendly  hand  on 
the  artist's  arm,  "  our  time  is  almost  up.  Give 
us  the  symbol  of  the  teacher's  work." 

There  was  an  instant  of  rapid  motion,  a  few 
skillful  lines,  and  it  needed  no  word  of  explana 
tion  to  recognize  the  great  family  Bible.  "  Now 
the  symbol  of  the  teacher's  hope,"  and  on  one 
page  of  the  open  Bible  there  flashed  an  anchor. 

"  No\v  the  symbol  of  his  reward,"  and  lo,  there 
rose  up  before  them  the  solid  wall,  built  brick 
by  brick.  Dr.  Vincent's  voice  was  almost  husky 
with  feeling,  so  suddenly  had  the  play  of  his  emo 
tions  changed,  as  he  said  :  "  Now  we  want  the 
the  foundation." 

How  did  Frank  Beard  do  it  with  a  dull  col 
ored  crayon  and  a  half-dozen  movements  of  his 
skillful  arm  ?  How  can  I  tell,  except  that  God 
has  given  to  the  arm  wondrous  skill ;  but  there 
appeared  before  that  astonished  multitude  a 
foundation  as  of  granite,  and  there  rose  from  it, 
as  if  suddenly  hewed  out  before  them,  a  clean- 
cut  solid  shaft  of  gray,  imperishable  granite. 


372  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

One  more  dash  of  the  wondrous  crayon  and  the 
shaft  was  done  —  a  solid  cross  ! 

Prof.  Sherwin  was  sitting,  for  want  of  a  bet 
ter  position,  on  the  floor  of  the  stand.  It  was 
the  only  available  space.  He  had  been  looking 
and  enjoying  as  only  men  like  Prof.  Sherwin 
can ;  and  now,  as  he  watched  the  outgrowth  of 
this  wonderful  cross,  as  the  last  stroke  was  given 
that  made  it  complete,  and  a  sound  like  a  sub 
dued  shout  of  joy  and  triumph  murmured  through 
the  crowd,  moved  as  by  a  sudden  mighty  im 
pulse  that  he  could  not  control,  his  splendid 
voice  burst  forth  in  the  glorious  words : 


Rock  of  Ages,  cleft  for  me, 
Let  me  hide  myself  in  Thee." 


And  that  great  multitude  took  it  up  and  rolled 
the  tribute  of -praise  down  those  resounding  aisles 
until  people  bowed  themselves,  and  some  of  them 
wept  softly  in  the  very  excess  of  their  joy  and 
thanksgiving.  It  was  all  so  sudden,  so  unex 
pected  ;  yet  it  was  so  surely  the  key-note  to  the 
Chautauqua  heart,  and  fitted  in  so  aptly  with 
their  professions  and  intentions.  They  could 


Sermons  in  Chalk.  373 

play  for  a  few  minutes  —  none  could  do  it  with 
better  hearts  or  more  utter  enjoyment  than  these 
same  splendid  leaders  —  but  how  surely  their 
hearts  turned  back  to  the  main  thought,  the 
main  work,  the  main  hope,  in  life  and  in  death. 

As  for  Eurie,  she  will  not  be  likely  to  forget 
that  sermon.  It  almost  overpowered  her. 
There  came  over  her  such  a  sudden  and  eager 
longing  to  understand  the  depths  from  whence 
such  feeling  sprung,  to  rest  her  feet  on  the  same 
foundation,  that  for  the  moment  her  heart  gave 
a  great  bound  and  said:  "It  is  worth  all  the 
self-denial  and  all  the  change  of  life  and  plans 
which  it  would  involve.  I  almost  think  I  want 
that  rather  than  anything  else."  That  misera 
ble  "  almost !  "  I  wonder  how  many  souls  it  has 
shipwrecked?  The  old  story.  If  Eurie  had 
been  familiar  with  her  Bible  it  would  surely 
have  reminded  her  of  the  foolish  listener  who 
said,  while  he  trembled  under  the  truth,  "  Almost 
thou  persuadest  me  to  be  a  Christian." 

Shall  I  tell  you  what  came  in,  just  then  and 
there,  to  influence  her  decision  ?  It  was  such  a 
miserable  little  thing  —  nothing  more  than  the 
remembrance  of  certain  private  parties  that 


374  Four   Crirla  at   Chautauqua. 

were  a  standing  institution  among  "  their  set " 
at  home,  to  meet  fortnightly  in  each  other's  par 
lors  for  a  social  dance.  Not  a  ball  I  oh,  no,  not 
at  all.  These  young  ladies  did  not  attend  balls^ 
unless  occasionally  a  charity  ball,  when  a  very  se 
lect  party  was  made  up.  Simply  quiet  evenings 
among  special  friends,  where  the  special  amuse 
ment  was  dancing. 

"  Dear  me  !  "  you  say,  "  I  am  a  Christian,  and 
I  don't  see  anything  wrong  in  dancing.  Wh}%  I 
dance  at  private  parties  very  often.  What  was 
there  in  that  thought  that  needed  to  influence 
her?" 

Oh,  well,  we  are  not  arguing,  you  know.  This 
is  simply  a  record  of  matters  and  things  as  they 
occurred  at  Chautauqua.  It  can  hardly  be  said 
to  be  a  story,  except  as  records  of  real  lives  of 
course  make  stories. 

But  Eurie  was  not  a  Christian,  you  see  ;  and 
however  foolish  it  may  have  been  in  her  she  had 
picked  out  dancing  as  one  of  the  amusements  not 
fitting  to  a  Christian  profession.  It  is  a  queer 
fact,  for  the  cause  of  which  I  do  not  pretend  to 
account,  but  if  you  are  curious,  and  will  investi 
gate  this  subject,  you  will  find  that  four  fifths  of 


Sermons  in   CTialJc.  375 

the  people  in  this  world  who  are  not  Christians 
have  tacitly  agreed  among  themselves  that  dan 
cing  is  not  an  amusement  that  seems  entirely 
suited  to  church-members.  If  you  want  to  get 
at  the  reason  for  this  strange  prejudice,  question 
some  of  them.  Meantime  the  fact  exists  that 
Eurie  felt  herself  utterly  unwilling  to  give  up  the 
leadership  of  those  fortnightly  parties,  and  that 
the  trivial  question  actually  came  in  then  and 
there,  while  she  stood  looking  at  that  picture  of 
the  cross ;  and  in  proportion  as  her  sudden  con 
viction  of  desire  lost  itself  in  this  whirl  of  in 
tended  amusement  did  her  disgust  arise  at  the 
thought  that  she  had  been  actually  betrayed  into 
listening  to  another  sermon  I 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

"  THEIR  WORKS  DO  FOLLOW  THEM." 


.ARION  went  alone  to  the  services  the 
next  morning.  It  was  in  vain  that  she 
assured  Eurie  that  Miss  Morris  was  going  to 
conduct  one  of  the  normal  classes,  and  that  she 
had  heard  her  spoken  of  as  unusually  sparkling. 
Eurie  shook  her  head. 

"  Go  and  hear  her  sparkle,  then,  by  all  means ; 
I  won't.  Now  that's  a  very  inelegant  word  to 
use,  but  it  is  expressive,  and  when  /  use  it  you 
may  know  that  I  mean  it;  I  am  tired  of  the 
whole  story,  and  I  have  been  cheated  times 
enough.  Look  at  yesterday  I  It  was  a  dozen 
prayer-meetings  combined.  No,  I  don't  get 
caught  this  morning." 

"  But  the  subject  is  one  that  will  not  admit 
(376) 


44  Their   Works  Do  Follow  Them."     377 

of  sermonizing  and  prayer-meetings  this  morn 
ing,''  Marion  pleaded  ;  "  I  am  specially  interested 
it.  It  is  4  How  to  win  and  hold  attention.' 
If  there  is  anything  earthly  that  a  ward  school 
teacher  needs  to  know  it  is  those  two  items.  I 
expect  to  get  practical  help." 

"  You  needn't  expect  anything  earthly ;  this 
crowd  have  nothing  to  do  with  matters  this  side 
of  eternity.  As  for  the  subject  not  admitting 
of  sermonizing,  look  at  the  subject  of  blackboard 
caricatures.  What  came  of  that?  " 
•  So  she  went  her  way,  and  Marion,  who  had 
seen  Miss  Morris  and  had  been  attracted,  looked 
her  up  with  earnest  work  in  view.  She  had  an 
ambition  to  be  a  power  in  her  school-room. 
Why  should  not  this  subject  help  her  ? 

The  tent  was  quite  full,  but  she  made  her  way 
to  a  corner  and  secured  a  seat.  Miss  Morris  was 
apparentty  engaged  in  introducing  herself  and 
apologizing  for  her  subject. 

"  I  tried  to  beg  off,"  she  said ;  "  I  told  them 
that  the  subject  and  I  had  nothing  in  common; 
that  I  was  a  primary  class  teacher,  and  in  that 
line  lay  my  work.  But  there  is  no  sort  of  use 
in  trying  to  change  Dr.  Vincent's  mind  about 


878  Four  Grirls  at  Chautauqua. 

anything,  so  I  had  to  submit.  But  for  once  in 
my  life  I  remind  myself  of  Gough.  I  once 
overheard  him  in  conversation  with  a  committee 
on  lectures.  They  were  objecting  to  having  him 
lecture  on  temperance,  and  pressing  him  to  name 
some  other  subject.  '  Choose  what  subject  you 
please,  gentlemen,'  he  said  at  last,  4  and  I'll  lect 
ure  on  it,  but  remember  what  I  say  will  be  on 
temperance.'  So  they  have  given  me  this  sub 
ject  and  I  have  engaged  to  take  it,  but  I  want 
you  to  remember  that  what  I  say  will  be  on  pri 
mary  class-teaching." 

By  this  time  Miss  Morris  had  the  sympathy 
of  her  audience,  and  had  awakened  an  interest 
to  see  how  she  would  follow  out  her  programme, 
and  from  first  to  last  she  held  their  attention. 
Certain  thoughts  glowed  vividly.  I  don't  know 
who  else  they  influenced,  but  I  knew  they  roused 
and  startled  Marion,  and  will  have  much  to  do 
with  her  future  methods  of  teaching. 

"  Remember,"  said  the  speaker,  "  that  you  can 
not  live  on  skim-milk  and  teach  cream  !  "  The 
thought  embodied  in  that  brief  and  telling  sen 
tence  was  as  old  as  time,  and  Marion  had  heard 
it  as  long  ago  as  she  remembered  anything,  but 
it  never  flashed  before  her  until  that  moment. 


«  Tlieir  Wo?ks  Do  Follow  Them."     379 

What  an  illustration  !  She  saw  herself  teach 
ing  her  class  in  botany  to  analyze  the  flowers,  to 
classify  them,  to  tell  every  minute  item  concern- 
Ing  them,  and  she  taught  them  nothing  to  say 
concerning  the  Creator.  Was  this  "  skim-milk  " 
teaching  ?  She  knew  so  many  ways  in  which, 
did  she  but  have  this  belief  concerning  heaven, 
and  Christ,  and  the  judgment,  in  her  heart,  she 
could  impress  it  upon  her  scholars.  She  had 
aimed  to  be  the  very  cream  of  teachers.  Was 
she?  She  came  back  from  her  reverie,  or, 
rather,  her  self-questioning,  to  hear  Miss  Morris 
say : 

"  Why,  one  move  of  your  hand  moves  all  cre 
ation  !  and  as  surely  does  one  thought  of  your 
soul  grow  and  spread  and  roll  through  the  uni 
verse.  Why,  you  can't  sit  in  your  room  alone, 
and  think  a  mean  thought,  or  a  false  thought, 
or  an  unchristian  thought,  without  its  influencing 
not  only  all  people  around  you,  not  only  all  peo 
ple  in  all  the  universe,  but  nations  jTet  unborn 
must  live  under  the  shadow  or  the  glory  that  the 
thought  involves." 

Bold  statements  these  I  But  Marion  could 
follow  h^r.  Intellectually  she  was  thoroughly 


880  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

posted.  Had  she  not  herself  used  the  illustra 
tion  of  the  tiny  stream  that  simpered  through 
the  home  meadow  and  went  on,  and  on,  and  on, 
until  it  helped  to  surge  the  beaches  of  the  ocean  ? 
But  here  was  a  principle  involved  that  reached 
beyond  the  ocean,  that  ignored  time,  that  sought 
after  eternity.  Was  she  following  the  stream? 
Could  she  honestly  tell  that  it  might  not  lead 
to  a  judgment  that  should  call  her  to  account  for 
her  non-religious  influence  over  her  scholars? 
Marion  was  growing  heavy-hearted ;  she  wanted 
at  least  to  do  no  harm  in  the  world  if  she  could 
do  no  good.  But  if  all  this  mountain  weight  of 
evidence  at  Chautauqua  proved  anything,  it 
proved  that  she  was  living  a  life  of  infidelity,  for 
the  influence  of  which  she  was  to  be  called  into 
judgment. 

No  sort  of  u»e  to  comfort  herself  with  the 
thought  that  she  talked  of  her  peculiar  views  to 
no  one ;  it  began  to  be  evident  that  the  things 
which  she  did  not  do  were  more  startling  than 
the  things  which  she  did. 

On  the  whole,  no  comfort  came  to  her  troubled 
soul  through  this  morning  session.  To  herself 
she  seemed  precisely  where  she  was  when  she 


"  Their   Works  Da  Follow  Them"     381 

went  into  that  tent,  only  perhaps  a  tiifle  more 
impressed  with  the  solemnity  of  all  things. 

But,  without  knowing  it,  a  great  stride  had 
been  taken  in  her  education.  She  was  not  again 
to  be  able  to  say :  "  I  injure  no  one  with  my  be 
lief ;  I  keep  it  to  myself."  "No  man  live th  to 
himself." 

The  verse  came  solemnly  to  her  as  she  went 
out,  as  though  other  than  human  voice  were  re 
minding  her  of  it,  and  life  began  to  feel  like  an 
overwhelming  responsibility  that  she  could  not 
assume.  When  one  begins  to  feel  that  thought 
in  all  its  force  the  next  step  is  to  find  one  who 
will  assume  the  responsibility  for  us.  She  met 
Ruth  on  her  way  up  the  hill. 

"  Flossy  has  deserted  me,"  Ruth  explained  as 
they  met;  "Ernie  carried  her  away  to  take  a 
walk.  Are  }-ou  going  to  hear  about  John  Knox  ? 
I  am  interested  in  him  chiefly  because  of  the 
voice  that  is  to  tell  of  him  to-day ;  I  like  Dr. 
Hurlburt," 

Marion's  only  reply  was :  "  I  don't  see  but  you 
come  to  meeting  quite  as  regularly,  now  that 
you  are  at  the  hotel,  as  you  did  when  on  the 
grounds." 


382  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

Then  they  went  to  secure  their  seats.  I  ain 
not  to  attempt  to  tell  you  anything  aboui  :ne 
John  Knox  lecture  ;  indeed  I  have  given  (.  ver 
telling  more  about  the  Chautauqua  addre&ses. 
It  is  of  no  sort  of  use.  One  only  feels  like  be 
moaning  a  failure  after  any  attempt  to  repeat 
such  lectures  as  we  heard  there.  Besides,  I  am 
chiefly  interested  at  present  in  their  effect  on 
our  girls. 

They  listened  —  these  two,  and  enjoyed  as 
people  with  brains  must  necessarily  have  done. 
But  there  was  more  than  that  to  it ;  there  were 
consequences  that  will  surely  be  met  again  at 
the  last  great  day. 

Ruth,  as  she  walked  thoughtfully  away,  said 
to  herself :  "  That  is  the  way.  Live  the  truth. 
It  is  a  different  day,  and  the  trials  and  experi 
ences  are  different,  but  life  must  be  the  same. 
It  is  not  the  clay  for  half-way  Christianity  nor 
for  idling;  I  will  be  an  earnest  Christian,  or  I 
will  not  dishonor  the  name  and  disgrace  the 
memory  of  such  men  as  Knox  by  claiming  to  be 
of  their  faith." 

While  Marion,  as  she  turned  her  flushed 
cheeks  hastily  away  from  Ruth,  nut  willing  to 


«  Their   Works  Do  Follow  Them."     383 

show  one  who  knew  nothing  about  this  matter, 
save  that  it  was  expedient  to  join  a  church,  had 
gotten  one  foot  set  firmly  toward  the  rock. 

"  The  power  that  enabled  that  man  to  live 
that  life  was  certainly  of  God,"  she  thought. 
"  It  must  be  true.  God  must  be  in  communi 
cation  with  some  of  the  souls  that  have  lived. 
Is  he  now,  and  can  I  be  one  of  them?  Oh,  I 
wonder  if  there  are  a  favored  few  who  have 
shone  out  as  grand  lights  in  the  world  and  have 
gone  up  from  the  world  to  their  reward  ?  And 
I  wonder  if  there  is  no  such  thing  now  ?  If  the 
blundering  creatures  who  call  themselves  by  his 
name  are  nothing  but  miserable  imitations  of 
what  was  once  real  ? 

44  Such  lives  as  that  one  can  understand  ;  but 
how  can  I  ever  believe  that  Deacon  Cole's  life 
is  molded  by  the  same  influence,  or,  indeed,  that 
mine  can  be  ?  Must  I  be  a  Deacon  Cole  Christ 
ian  if  I  am  one  at  all  ?  " 

The  afternoon  clouded  over,  and  a  mincing 
little  rain  began  to  full.  Marion  stood  in  the 
tent  door  and  grumbled  over  it. 

44 1  wanted  to  hear  that  Mr.  Hazard,"  she  said ; 
"I  rather  fancy  his  face,  and  I  fancy  the  name 


Four  Crirls  at  CJiautauqua. 

of  his  subject.  I  had  a  curiosity  to  see  what  he 
would  do  with  it,  and  here  is  this  rain  to  hin 
der." 

Ruth  and  Flossy  had  come  over  for  the  day, 
and  were  waiting  in  the  tent. 

"  Haven't  you  been  at  Chautauqua  long 
enough  to  catch  one  of  its  cardinal  rules,  never 
to  stay  at  home  for  rain  ?  "  Flossy  said. 

Marion  looked  around  at  her.  She  was  put 
ting  on  her  rubbers. 

"  Are  you  really  going  ? "  She  asked  the 
question  in  great  surprise.  "  Why,  Flossy,  it  is 
going  to  rain  hard !  " 

"  What  of  it  ?  "  said  Flossy,  lightly.  "  I  have 
waterproof,  and  rubbers,  and  umbrella,  and  if  it 
gets  to  be  too  wet  I  can  run  to  a  tent." 

"  If  you  were  at  home  you  wouldn't  think  of 
going  to  church.  Why,  Flossy  Shipley,  I  never 
knew  you  to  go  out  in  the  rain!  I  thought 
you  were  always  afraid  you  would  spoil  your 
clothes." 

"  That  was  because  I  had  none  already  spoiled 
to  wear,"  Flossy  answered,  cheerily;  "but  that 
difficulty  is  obviated  ;  I  have  spoiled  two  dresses 
since  I  have  been  here.  This  one  now  is  indif- 


"  Their   Works  Do  Follow  Them:'     385 

ferent  to  the  rain,  and  will  be  for  the  future.  I 
have  an  improvement  on  that  plan,  though;  I 
mean  to  have  a  rainy-day  dress  as  soon  as  1  get 
home.  Come,  it  is  time  we  were  off." 

"  I  believe  I  am  a  dunce,"  Marion  said,  slowly. 
"  I  think  it  is  going  to  rain  hard  ;  but  as  I  have 
to  go,  at  home,  whether  it  rains  or  shines,  I  sup 
pose  I  can  do  it  here.  But  if  this  were  a  congre 
gation  of  respectable  city  Christians,  instead  of 
a  set  of  lunatics,  there  wouldn't  be  a  dozen  out." 

They  found  hundreds  out,  however.  Indeed, 
it  proved  to  be  difficult  to  secure  seats.  That 
address  was  heard  under  difficulties.  In  the 
first  place  it  would  rain;  not  an  out-and-out 
hearty  shower,  that  would  at  once  set  at  rest  the 
attempt  to  hold  an  out-door  meeting,  but  an  ex 
asperating  little  drizzle,  enlivened  occasionally 
by  a  fe\v  smart  drops  that  seemed  to  hint  busi 
ness.  There  was  a  constant  putting  up  of  um 
brellas  and  putting  them  down  again.  There 
was  a  constant  fidgeting  about,  and  getting  up 
and  sitting  down  again,  to  let  some  of  the  more 
nervous  ones  who  had  resolved  upon  a  decided 
rain  escape  to  safer  quarters.  Half  of  the  peo 
ple  had  their  heads  twisted  around  to  get  a  peep 


386  Four  G-irls  at  Chautauqua. 

at  the  sky,  to  see  what  the  clouds  really  did 
mean,  anyway. 

Our  girls  had  one  of  the  uncomfortable  posts. 
Arrived  late,  they  had  to  take  what  they  could 
get,  and  it  was  some  distance  from  the  speaker, 
and  their  sight  and  sound  were  so  marred  by  the 
constant  changes  and  the  whirl  of  umbrellas 
that  Marion  presently  lost  all  patience  and  gave 
up  the  attempt  to  listen.  She  would  have  de 
serted  altogether  but  for  the  look  of  eager  atten 
tion  on  Flossy's  face.  Despite  the  annoyances, 
she  was  evidently  hearing  and  enjoying.  It 
seemed  a  pity  to  disturb  her  and  suggest  a  re 
turn  to  the  tent;  besides,  Marion  felt  half 
ashamed  to  do  so. 

It  was  not  pleasant  to  give  tacit  acknowledg 
ment  to  the  fact  that  poor  little,  unintellectual 
Flossy  was  much  more  interested  than  herself. 
She  gave  herself  up  to  an  old  and  favorite  em 
ployment  of  hers,  that  of  looking  at  faces  and 
studying  them,  when  a  sudden  hush  that  seemed 
to  be  settling  over  the  hither  to  fidgety  audience 
arrested  her  attention. 

The  speaker's  voice  was  full  of  pathos,  and  so 
quiet  had  the  place  become  that  every  word  of 


"  Their  Works  Do  Follow  Them"     387 

his  could  be  distinctly  heard.  He  was  evidently 
in  the  midst  of  a  story,  the  first  of  which  she  had 
not  heard.  This  was  the  sentence,  as  her  ears 
took  it  up : 

"Don't  cry,  father,  don't  cry!  To-night  I 
shall  be  with  Jesus,  and  I  will  tell  him  that  you 
did  all  you  could  to  bring  me  there  !  " 

What  a  tribute  for  a  child  to  give  to  a  father's 
love  !  Flossy,  with  her  cheeks  glowing  and  her 
eyes  shining  like  stars,  quietly  wiped  away  the 
tears,  and  in  her  heart  the  resolve  grew  strong 
to  live  so  that  some  one,  dying,  could  say  of  her : 
"  I  will  tell  Jesus  that  you  did  all  you  could  to 
bring  me  there  !  " 

Do  you  think  that  was  what  the  sentence  said 
to  Marion  ?  Quick  as  thought  her  life  flashed 
back  to  that  old  dingy,  weather-beaten  house, 
to  that  pale-faced  man,  with  his  patched  clothing 
and  his  gray  hairs  straggling  over  on  the  coarse 
pillow.  Her  father,  dying  —  her  one  friend,  who 
had  been  her  memory  of  love  and  care  all  these 
long  years,  dying  —  and  these  were  the  last 
words  his  lips  had  said : 

"  Don't  cry,  little  girl  —  father's  dear  little 
girl.  I  am  going  to  Jesus.  I  shall  be  there  in 


388  Four  G-irls  at  CJiautauqua. 

a  little  while.  I  shall  tell  him  that  I  tried  to 
have  you  come !  " 

Oh,  blessed  father !  How  hard  he  had  tried 
in  his  feebleness  and  weakness  to  teach  her  the 
way !  How  sure  he  had  seemed  to  feel  that  she 
would  follow  him  !  And  how  had  she  wandered ! 
How  far  away  she  was !  Oh,  blessed  Spirit  of 
God,  to  seek  after  her  all  these  years,  through 
all  the  weak  and  foolish  mazes  of  doubt,  and  in 
difference,  and  declared  unbelief — still  coming 
with  her  down  to  this  afternoon  at  Chautauqua, 
and  there  renewing  to  her  her  father's  parting 
word. 

She  had  often  and  often  thought  of  these 
words  of  her  father's.  In  a  sense,  they  had  been 
ever  present  with  her.  Just  why  they  should 
come  at  this  time,  bringing  such  a  sense  of  cer 
tainty  about  them  to  her  very  soul  that  all  this 
was  truth,  God's  solemn,  real,  unchangeable 
truth,  and  force  this  conviction  upon  her  in  such 
a  way  that  she  was  moved  to  say,  "  Whereas  I 
was  blind,  now  I  see,"  I  can  not  tell. 

Why  Mr.  Hazard  was  used  as  the  instrument 
of  such  a  revelation  of  God  to  her  I  can  mt 


"  Their   Works  Do  Follow  Them:'     389 

tell.  Perhaps  he  had  prayed  that  his  work  at 
Chautauqua  that  rainy  afternoon  might,  in  some 
way,  be  blessed  to  the  help  of  some  struggling 
soul.  Perhaps  this  was  the  answer  to  his 
prayer  —  unheard,  unseen  by  him,  as  many  an 
answer  to  our  pleading  is,  and  yet  the  answer  as 
surely  comes.  Who  can  tell  how  this  may  be  ? 
I  do  not  know.  I  know  this,  that  Marion's 
heart  gave  a  great  sobbing  cry,  as  it  said : 

"Oh,  father,  father!  if  your  God,  if  your 
Christ,  will  help  me,  I  will  —  I  wilUry  to  come." 

It  was  her  way  of  repeating  the  old  cry,  "  Lord, 
I  believe,  help  thou  mine  unbelief."  And  1  do 
kuo\v  that  it  is  written,  "  Blessed  are  the  dead 
which  die  in  the  Lord  from  henceforth  :  Yea, 
saith  the  Spirit,  that  they  may  rest  from  their  la 
bors  ;  and  their  works  do  follow  them."  It  was 
fifteen  years  that  the  weary  father  had  been  rest 
ing  from  his  labors,  and  here  were  his  works  fol 
lowing  him. 

I  have  heard  that  Mr.  Hazard  said,  as  he  folded 
his  papers  and  came  down  from  the  stand  that 
afternoon,  "  It  was  useless  to  try  to  talk  in  such 
a  rain,  with  the  prospect  of  more  every  minute. 


390  Four  G-irh  at  Chautauqua. 

The  people  could  not  listen.  It  would  have 
been  better  to  have  adjourned.  Nothing  was  ac 
complished."  Much  he  knew  about  it,  or  will 
know  until  the  day  when  the  secrets  of  all  hearts 
shall  be  revealed  1 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 


UNFINISHED     MUSIC. 


•EANTIME,  tbis  da}r,  which  was  to  be  so 
fraught  with  consequences  to  Marion, 
was  on  Eurie's  hands  to  dispose  of  as  best  she 
could.  To  be  at  Chautauqua,  and  to  be  bent  on 
having  nothing  whatever  to  do  with  any  of  the 
Chautauqua  life,  was  in  itself  a  novel  position, 
The  more  so  as  she  felt  herself  quite  deserted. 
The  necessity  for  reporting  served  Marion  as  an 
excuse  for  attending  even  those  meetings  which 
she  did  not  report ;  and  the  others  having  gone 

to  Mayville  to  live,  this  foolish  sheep,  who  was 

(391) 


392  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

\vithin  the  fold,  and  who  would  not  be  of  it, 
went  wandering  whither  she  would  in  search  of 
amusement. 

After  Marion  left  her  she  made  her  way  to 
the  museum,  and  a  pleasant  hour  she  spent;  one 
could  certainly  not  desire  a  more  attractive  spot. 
She  went  hither  and  thither,  handling  and  ad 
miring  the  books,  the  pictures,  the  maps,  the 
profusion  of  curiosities,  and,  at  the  end  of  the 
hour,  when  the  press  of  visitors  became  too 
great  to  make  a  longer  stay  agreeable,  she  de 
parted  well  pleased  with  herself  that  she  had 
had  the  wisdom  to  choose  such  a  pleasant  resort 
instead  of  a  seat  in  some  crowded  tent  as  a  list 
ener. 

Coming  out,  she  walked  down  the  hill,  and  on 
and  on,  watching  the  crowds  of  people  who 
were  gathering,  and  wishing  she  had  a  pro 
gramme  that  she  might  see  what  the  special  at 
traction  was  that  seemed  to  be  drawing  so 
many. 

At  last  she  reached  the  wharf.  The  Assem 
bly  steamer  was  lying  at  her  dock,  her  jaunty 
flags  flying,  and  the  commotion  upon  her  decks 
betokening  that  she  was  making  ready  for  a  voy- 


Unfinished  Music.  393 

age.  The  crowd  seemed  greater  there  than  at 
any  other  point.  It  would  appear  that  the  spe 
cial  attraction  was  here,  after  all.  She  under 
stood  it,  and  pushed  nearer,  as  the  ringing  notes 
of  song  suddenly  rose  on  the  air,  and  she  recog 
nized  the  voices  of  the  Tennesseeans. 

This  was  a  great  treat :  she  delighted  in  hear 
ing  them.  She  allowed  herself  to  be  elbowed 
and  jostled  by  the  throng,  reaching  every  mo 
ment  by  judicious  pushing  a  place  where  she 
could  not  only  hear  but  see,  and  where  escape 
was  impossible.  The  jubilant  chorus  ceased, 
and  one  of  those  weird  minor  wails,  such  as  their 
music  abounds  in,  floated  tenderly  around  her. 

It  was  a  farewell  song,  so  full  of  genuine 
pathos,  and  so  tenderly  sung,  that  it  was  in  vain 
to  try  to  listen  without  a  swelling  of  the  throat 
and  a  sense  of  sadness.  Something  in  the  way 
that  the  people  pressed  nearer  to  listen  sug 
gested  to  Eurie  that  it  must  be  designed  as  a 
farewell  tribute  to  somebody,  and  presently 
Prof.  Sherwin  mounted  a  seat  that  served  as  a 
platform  and  gave  them  a  tender  informal  fare 
well  address.  In  every  sentence  his  great,  warm 
heart  shone. 


394  Four  Girls  at  Ohautauqua. 

"I  am  going  away,"  he  said,  "before  the 
blessed  season  at  Chautauqua  is  concluded.  I 
am  going  with  a  sad  heart,  for  I  feel  that  oppor 
tunities  here  for  work  for  the  Master  have  been 
great,  and  some  of  them  I  have  lost.  And  yet 
there  is  light  in  the  sadness,  for  the  work  that 
I  can  not  do  will  yet  be  done.  I  once  sat  be 
fore  my  organ  improvising  a  thought  that  was  in 
my  heart,  trying  to  give  expression  to  it,  and  I 
could  not.  I  knew  what  I  wanted,  and  I  knew 
it  was  in  my  heart,  but  how  to  give  it  expression 
I  did  not  know.  A  celebrated  organist  came  up 
the  stairs  and  stood  beside  me.  I  looked  around 
to  him.  '  Can't  you  take  this  tune,'  I  said,  'just 
where  I  leave  it,  and  finish  it  for  me  as  I  have  it 
in  my  heart  to  do  ?  I  can't  give  it  utterance. 
Don't  you  see  what  I  want  ? ' " 

" '  Perhaps  I  do,'  he  said,  and  he  placed  his 
fingers  over  my  fingers,  on  the  same  keys  that 
mine  were  touching,  and  I  slipped  out  of  the 
seat  and  back  into  the  shadow,  and  he  slipped 
into  my  place,  and  then  the  music  rolled  forth ! 
My  tune,  only  I  could  not  play  it.  Pie  was 
doing  it  for  me.  So,  though  I  may  have  failed 
in  my  work  that  I  have  tried  to  do  here,  the 


Unfinished  Music.  395 

great  Master  is  here,  and  I  pray  and  I  hope  and 
I  believe  that  he  will  put  his  grand  hand  upon 
my  unfinished  work  and  in  heaven  I  shall  meet 
it  completed.'  " 

What  was  there  in  this  to  move  Eurie  to 
tears  ?  She  did  not  know  Prof.  Sherwin  —  that 
is,  she  had  never  been  introduced  to  him  —  but 
she  had  heard  him  sing,  she  had  heard  him  pray, 
she  had  met  him  in  the  walk  and  asked  where 
the  Sunday-school  lesson  was,  and  he  had  in  part 
directed  her  —  directed  her  in  such  a  way  that 
she  had  been  led  to  seek  further,  and  in  doing  so 
had  met  Miss  Ryder,  and  in  meeting  her  had 
been  interested  ever  since  in  studying  a  Chris 
tian  life.  Was  this  one  of  Prof.  Sherwin's  unfin 
ished  tunes  ?  Would  he  meet  it  again  in  heaven  ? 

A  very  tender  spirit  took  possession  of  Eurie 
—  an  almost  irresistible  longing  to  know  more 
of  this  influence,  or  presence,  or  whatever  name 
it  should  be  called,  that  so  moved  hearts,  and 
made  the  friends  of  a  week  say  farewell  with 
tears,  and  yet  with  hopeful  smiles  as  they  spoke 
in  joy  and  assurance  of  a  future  meeting. 

Prof.  Sherwin  and  his  friends  embarked,  and 
the  dainty  little  steamer  turned  her  graceful 


896  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

head  toward  Mayville,  and  slipped  away  over 
tlie  silver  water.  Eurie  made  no  attempt  to  get 
away  from  the  throng  who  pressed  to  the  edge 
of  the  dock  to  get  the  last  bow,  the  last  flutter 
of  his  handkerchief.  She  even  drew  out  her 
own  handkerchief  and  fluttered  ifc  after  him,  and 
received  from  him  a  special  bow,  and  was  almost 
decided  to  resolve  to  be  present  in  joy  at  that 
other  meeting,  and  to  make  sure  this  very  day 
of  her  title  to  an  inheritance  there.  Almost ! 

Going  back  she  met  Ruth  and  Flossy.  She 
seized  eagerly  upon  the  latter. 

"  Come,"  she  said,  "  you  have  been  to  meet 
ings  enough,  and  you  haven't  taken  a  single 
walk  with  me  since  we  have  been  here,  and 
think  of  the  promises  we  made  to  entertain  each 
other." 

Flossy  laughed  cheerfully. 

"We  have  been  entertained,  without  any 
effort  on  our  part,"  she  said.  Nevertheless  she 
suffered  herself  to  be  persuaded  to  go  for  a  walk, 
provided  Eurie  would  go  to  Palestine. 

"  What  nonsense !  "  Eurie  said,  disdainfully, 
when  Flossy  had  explained  to  her  that  she  had  a 
consuming  desire  to  wander  along  the  banks  of 


Unfinished  Music.  397 

the  Jordan,  and  view  those  ancient  cities,  his 
toric  now.  "  However,  I  would  just  as  soon 
walk  in  that  direction  as  any  other." 

There  was  one  other  person  who,  it  transpired, 
would  as  soon  take  a  walk  as  do  anything  else 
just  then.  He  joined  the  girls  as  they  turned 
toward  the  Palestine  road.  That  was  Mr.  Evan 
Roberts. 

"  Are  you  going  to  visit  the  Holy  Land  this 
morning,  and  may  I  be  of  your  party  ? "  he 
asked. 

"  Yes,"  Flossy  answered,  whether  to  the  first 
question,  or  to  both  in  one,  she  did  not  say. 
Then  she  introduced  Eurie,  and  the  three  walked 
on  together,  discussing  the  morning  and  the 
meetings  with  zest. 

"  Here  we  are,  on  '  Jordan's  stormy  banks,'  " 
Mr.  Roberts  said,  at  last,  halting  beside  the 
grassy  bank.  "  I  suppose  there  was  never  a 
more  perfect  geographical  representation  than 
this." 

"Do  you  really  think  it  has  any  practical 
value?  "  Eurie  asked,  skeptically.  Mr.  Roberts 
looked  at  her  curiously. 

"  Hasn't  it  to  you  ?  "  he  said.     "  Now,  to  me, 


398  Four  Grirls  at  Chautauqua. 

it  is  just  brimful  of  interest  and  value  ;  that  is,  as 
much  value  as  geographical  knowledge  ever  is. 
I  take  two  views  of  it.  If  I  never  have  an  act 
ual  sight  of  the  sacred  land,  by  studying  this 
miniature  of  it,  I  have  as  full  a  knowledge  as  it 
is  possible  to  get  without  the  actual  view,  and  if 
I  at  some  future  day  am  permitted  to  travel 
there,  why  —  well,  you  know  of  course  how 
pleasant  it  is  to  be  thoroughly  posted  in  regard 
to  the  places  of  interest  that  you  are  about 
to  visit;  every  European  traveler  understands 
that." 

"  But  do  you  suppose  it  is  really  an  accurate 
outline  ? "  Eurie  said,  again,  quoting  opinions 
that  she  had  read  until  she  fancied  they  were 
her  own. 

Again  Mr.  Roberts  favored  her  with  that  pe 
culiar  look  from  under  heavy  eyebrows  —  a  look 
half  satirical,  half  amused. 

"  Some  of  the  most  skilled  surve}^ors  and  trav 
eled  scholars  have  so  reported,"  he  said,  care 
lessly.  "And  when  you  add  to  that  the  fact 
that  they  are  Christian  men,  who  have  no  spe 
cial  reason  for  getting  up  a  wholesale  deception 
for  us,  and  are  supposed  to  be  tolerably  reliable 


Unfinished  Music.  399 

on  all  other  subjects,  I  see  no  reason  to  doubt 
the  statement." 

On  the  whole,  Eurie  had  the  satisfaction  of 
realizing  that  she  had  appeared  like  a  simple 
ton. 

Flossy,  meantime,  was  wandering  delightedly 
along  the  banks,  stopping  here  and  there  to  read 
the  words  on  the  little  white  tablets  that  marked 
the  places  of  special  interest. 

"Do    you    see,"   she    said,   turning    eagerly, 
"  that  these  are  Bible  references  on  each  tablet  ? 
Wouldn't  it  be  interesting  to  know  what  they 
selected  as   the   scene  to  especially  mark   this 
place?" 

Mr.  Roberts  swung  a  camp-chair  from  his  arm, 
planted  it  firmly  in  the  ground,  and  drew  a  Bible 
from  his  pocket. 

"Miss  Mitchell,"  he  said,  "suppose  you  sit 
down  here  in  this  road,  leading  from  Jerusalem 
to  Bethany,  and  tell  us  what  is  going  on  just 
now  in  Betbau}r,  while  Miss  Shipley  and  I  sup 
ply  }*ou  with  chapter  and  verse." 

"  I  am  not  very  familiar  with  the  text-book," 
Eurie  said.  "  If  }TOU  are  really  in  the  village 
yourselves  you  might  possibly  inquire  of  the  in- 


400  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

habitants  before  I  could  find  the  account."  But 
she  took  the  chair  and  the  Bible. 

"Look  at  Matthew  xxi.  17,  Eurie,"  Flossy 
said,  stooping  over  the  tablet,  and  Eurie  read : 

" '  And  he  left  them,  and  went  out  of  the  city 
into  Bethany  ;  and  he  lodged  there.'  " 

"  That  was  Jesus,  wasn't  it  ?  Then  he  went 
this  way,  this  very  road,  Eurie,  where  you  are 
sitting!  "  It  was  certainly  very  fascinating. 

"And  stopped  at  the  house  on  which  you 
have  your  hand,  perhaps,"  Mr.  Roberts  said, 
smiling  at  her  eager  face. 

"  That  might  have  been  Simon's  house,  for  in 
stance." 

"  Did  lie  live  in  Bethany  ?  I  don't  know  any 
thing  about  these  things." 

"  Eurie,  look  if  you  can  find  anything  about 
him.  The  next  reference  is  Matthew  xxvi." 

And  again  Eurie  read : 

" '  Now  when  Jesus  was  in  Bethany,  in  the 
house  of  Simon  the  leper.' " 

"  The  very  place  !  "  Flossy  said,  again.  "  Oh, 
I  want  so  much  to  know  what  happened  then  !  " 

"Won't  Miss  Mitchell  read  it  to  us?"  Mr. 
Roberts  said,  and  he  arranged  his  shawl  along 


Unfinished  Music.  401 

the  ground  for  seats.  "Since  we  have  really 
come  to  Bethany,  let  us  have  the  full  benefit  of 
it.  Now,  Miss  ShiplejT,  take  a  seat,  and  we  will 
give  ourselves  up  to  the  pleasure  of  being  with 
Jesus  in  Simon's  house,  and  looking  on  at  the 
scene." 

So  they  disposed  of  themselves  on  the  grass, 
and  Eurie,  hardly  able  to  restrain  a  laugh  over 
the  novelty  of  the  situation,  and  }-et  wonderfully 
fascinated  by  the  whole  scene,  read  to  them  the 
tender  story  of  the  loving  woman  with  her 
sweet-smelling  ointment,  growing  more  and 
more  interested,  until  in  the  closing  verse  her 
voice  was  full  of  feeling. 

"'Verily  I  say  unto  you,  "Wheresoever  this 
gospel  shall  be  preached  in  the  whole  world, 
there  shall  also  this,  that  this  woman  hath  done, 
be  told  as  a  memorial  of  her/  " 

"  Think  of  that !  "  said  Mr.  Roberts.  "  And 
here  are  we,  eighteen  hundred  years  afterward, 
sitting  here  in  Bethany  and  talking  of  that  same 
woman  still!  Miss  Mitchell,  are  you  going  to 
do  something  for  Christ  that  shall  be  talked  over 
a  thousand  years  from  now?  There  is  a  chance 
for  undying  fame." 


402  Four  G-irls  at  Chautauqua. 

"  Doubtful ! "  Eurie  said,  but  she  did  not 
smile  ;  her  face  was  grave. 

"  Or,  better  still,  are  you  going  to  do  such 
work  for  Christ  that,  hundreds  of  years  after, 
your  influence  will  be  silently  living  and  work 
ing  out  its  fruit  in  human  hearts  ?  " 

"  It  is  altogether  more  likely  that  I  shall  do 
nothing  at  all." 

"  Out  of  the  question,"  he  said,  with  a  grave 
smile.  "  Either  for  or  against,  every  life  must 
be,  whether  we  will  it  or  not.  4  He  that  is  not 
with  me  is  against  me,'  was  the  word  of  the 
Master  himself,  and  as  long  as  eternity  lasts  the 
fruit  of  the  sowing  will  last." 

"  That  is  a  fearfully  solemn  thought,"  Flossy 
said,  earnestly. 

Mr.  Roberts  turned  toward  her  a  face  aglow 
with  smiles  now. 

"  And  a  wondrously  precious  one,"  he  said, 
and  Flossy  answered  him  in  a  low  tone : 

"  Yes,  I  can  see  that  it  might  be." 

Now,  the  actual  fact  is,  that  those  three  people 
wandered  around  that  far-away  land  until  the 
morning  vanished  and  the  loud  peal  of  the  Chau- 
tauqua  bells  announced  the  fact  that  the  feast  of 


Unfinished  Music.  403 

intellect  was  over,  and  it  was  time  for  dinner 
They  went  from  Bethany  to  Bethel,  and  from 
Bethel  to  Shechem,  and  they  even  climbed 
Mount  Hermon's  snowy  peak,  and  looked  about 
on  the  lovely  plain  below.  In  every  place  there 
was  Bible  reading,  and  Eurie  was  the  reader,  and 
it  was  such  a  morning  thai;  she  will  remember  for 
all  time. 

"  Pray,  who  is  this  Mr.  Roberts  ?  "  she  asked, 
as  they  parted  company  at  the  foot  of  the  hill. 
"  Where  did  you  make  his  acquaintance  ?  " 

"  He  is  Mrs.  Smythe's  nephew,"  Flossy  said. 
"She  introduced  me  to  him  the  other  evening." 

"The  other  evening!  You  seemed  to  be  as 
well  acquainted  as  though  you  had  spent  the 
summer  together." 

"Some  people  have  a  way  of  seeming  like 
friends  on  short  acquaintance,"  Flossy  said,  with 
grave  face  and  smiling  eyes. 

"  You  two  missed  a  good  deal  by  your  folly 
this  morning,"  Ruth  said,  as  they  met  at  dinner. 
"  We  had  a  grand  lecture." 

"So  had  we,"  answered  Eurie,  significantly, 
and  that  was  every  word  she  vouchsafed  con 
cerning  the  trip  to  Palestine. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 


MENTAL  PEOBLEMS. 


R.  DEEMS,"  said  Ruth,  looking  up  from 
her  programme  with  a  thoughtful  air. 
"  I  wonder  if  he  is  a  man  whom  I  have  any  spe 
cial  desire  to  hear  ?  " 

You  must  constantly  remember  the  entire  ig 
norance  of  these  girls  on  all  names  and  topics 
that  pertained  to  the  religious  world.  Ruth 
knew  indeed  that  the  gentleman  in  question  was 
a  New  York  clergyman;  that  was  as  far  as  her 
knowledge  extended. 

"  His  subject  is  interesting,"  Flossy  said. 

"I  don't  think  it  is,"  said   Eurie.     "Not  to 
(404) 


Mental  Problems.  405 

ine,  anyhow.  Nature  and  I  have  nothing  in 
common,  except  to  have  a  good  time  together  if 
we  can  get  it.  She  is  a  miserably  disappointed 
jade,  I  know.  What  has  she  done  for  us  since 
\ve  have  been  here  except  to  arrange  rainy 
weather?  I'm  going  to  visit  his  honor  the 
mummy  this  morning,  and  from  there  I  am 
going  to  the  old  pyramid ;  and  I  advise  you  to 
go  with  me,  all  of  you.  Talk  about  nature 
when  there  is  an  old  fellow  to  see  who  was  ac 
quainted  with  it  thousands  of  years  ago.  Na 
ture  is  too  common  an  affair  to  be  interested 
in." 

"  Oh,  are  you  going  to  the  museum  ?  "  said 
Flossy.  "  Then  please  get  me  one  of  the  '  Bliss ' 
singing  books,  will  you  ?  I  want  to  secure  one 
before  they  are  all  gone.  Girls,  don't  you  each 
want  one  of  them  to  take  home  ?  The  hymns 
are  lovely." 

"  I  don't,"  said  Eurie,  "  unless  he  is  for  sale  to 
go  along  and  sing  them.  I  can't  imagine  any 
thing  tamer  than  to  hear  some  commonplace 
voice  trying  to  do  those  songs  that  he  roars  out 
without  any  effort  at  all.  What  has  become  of 
the  man  ?  " 


406  Four  6rirls  at  Chautauqua. 

"  He  has  gone,"  said  Marion.  "  Called  home 
suddenly,  some  one  told  me.  His  singing  is 
splendid,  isn't  it  ?  I  don't  know  but  I  feel 
much  as  you  do  about  the  book.  Think  of  hav 
ing  Deacon  Millar  try  to  sing,  4  Onty  an  armor- 
bearer  I '  I  don't  mind  telling  you  that  I  felt 
very  much  as  if  I  were  being  lifted  right  off  my 
feet  and  carried  up  somewhere,  I  hardly  know 
where,  when  I  heard  him  sing  that.  I  was  com 
ing  down  the  hill,  away  off,  you  know,  by  the 
post-office  —  no.,  away  above  the  post-office,  and 
he  suddenly  burst  forth.  I  stopped  to  listen, 
and  I  could  hear  every  single  word  as  distinctly 
as  I  can  hear  you  in  this  tent." 

"Hear!"  said  Eurie,  "I  guess  you  could.  I 
shouldn't  be  surprised  if  they  heard  him  over  at 
Mayville,  and  that  is  what  brings  such  crowds 
here  every  day.  Did  you  ever  see  anything  like 
the  way  the  people  come  here,  anyhow?" 

"I  don't  feel  at  all  as  yon  do,"  said  Flossy, 
going  back  to  the  question  of  singing-books. 
" After  we  get  let  down  a  little,  'Only  an 
armor-bearer '  will  sound  very  well  even  from 
common  singers.  It  has  in  it  what  can't  be 
taken  out  because  a  certain  voice  is  lost;  and 


Mental  Problems.  407 

the  book  is  full  of  other  and  simpler  pieces,  and 
lovely  choruses,  that  people  can  catch  after  one 
healing." 

"  Flossy  is  going  home  to  introduce  it  into  the 
First  Church,"  Eurie  said,  gravely. 

Flossy 's  cheeks  flushed. 

"  I  had  not  thought  of  that,"  she  said,  simply ; 
"  perhaps  we  can.  In  any  case  get  me  a  couple, 
Eurie." 

The  discussion  on  the  morning  service  ended 
in  a  division  of  the  party.  Ruth,  who  had  come 
over  early  on  purpose  to  attend,  was  obliged  to 
succumb  to  a  feeling  of  utter  weariness  and  lie 
down. 

Eurie  steadily  refused  to  go  to  the  platform 
meeting,  assuring  them  that  she  knew  Dr.  Deems 
would  be  "as  dry  as  a  stick ;  all  New  York  min 
isters  were." 

So  Flossy  and  Marion  went  away  together, 
Marion  with  her  note-book  in  the  hope  of  get 
ting  an  item  for  a  newspaper  letter  that  must  be 
written  that  afternoon. 

They  were  late,  and  almost  abandoned  in  de 
spair  the  hope  of  getting  within  hearing,  until  a 
happy  thought  suggested  a  seat  on  the  platform 


408  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

stair  at  the  speaker's  back.  There  was  a  "crack" 
there,  Marion  said,  into  which  they  presently 
crept. 

The  address  was  already  commenced.  Marion 
listened  at  first  with  that  indifferent  air  that  a 
face  wears  when  its  owner  perforce  commences 
in  the  middle  of  a  thing,  and  has  to  wait  his  way 
to  a  tangible  idea  of  what  is  being  said. 

There  was  not  long  waiting,  however.  Her 
eyes  began  to  dilate  and  her  face  to  glow ;  she 
was  almost  a  worshiper  of  eloquence,  and  surely 
no  one  ever  sat  for  two  hours  and  listened  to  a 
more  unbroken  flow  of  rich,  glowing  words,  shin 
ing  like  diamonds,  than  fell  lavishly  around  the 
listeners  that  Friday  morning  at  Chautauqua. 
But  a  few  minutes  and  Marion's  pencil  began  to 
move  with  speed.  This  was  the  thought  that 
had  thrilled  her : 

"  First,  light ;  then  liberation  from  chaos  ;  then 
grass ;  and  then  God  stopped  his  work  and  gazed 
with  delight  on  the  picture  he  had  drawn. 
Think  what  a  picture  it  must  have  been  I  There 
was  nothing  but  rocks  ground  down  ^  hen 
God  said,  4 Earth,  grow  !'  Then  straightway  the 
mother  power  fell  down  upon  the  earth,  life  pulsed 


Mental  Problems.  409 

in  her  veins,  and  the  baby  shoot  of  grass  sprang 
.up,  and  the  rocky  earth  wrapped  herself  in  her 
garment  of  emerald,  and  God,  stopping  his  work, 
said,  '  Useful,  beautiful ! ' " 

When  the  speaker  touched  upon  the  doctrine 
of  the  resurrection  Marion's  pencil  paused,  and 
she  leaned  eagerly  forward  to  get  a  glimpse  of 
his  face.  That  doctrine  had  seemed  to  her 
doubting  heart  the  strangest,  wildest,  most  hope 
less  of  the  Christian  theories.  If  clear  light 
could  shine  on  that,  could  there  not  on  any 
thing?  Her  face  was  aglow  with  interest  not 
only,  but  with  anxiety. 

This  morning,  for  the  first  time  in  her  life,  she 
could  be  called  an  honest  doubter.  She  had 
fancied  herself  able  to  believe  anything  of  which 
her  reason  had  been  convinced  ;  but  she  found, 
to  her  surprise  and  dismay,  that  so  fixed  had  the 
habit  of  unbelief  become,  it  seemed  impossible 
to  shake  it  off,  and  that  she  needed  to  be  con 
vinced  and  reconviuced ;  that  her  questionings 
came  in  on  every  hand,  seized  upon  the  smallest 
point,  and  tormented  her  without  mercy.  What 
about  this  strange  story  of  the  resurrection  ? 

As  she  listened  a  subdued  smile  broke  over 


410  Four  Grirls  at  Chautauqua. 

her  face  —  a  smile  of  sarcasm.  How  very  ab 
surdly  simple  the  argument  from  nature  was, 
how  utterly  unanswerable  !  And  after  the  sen 
tence,  "  Tell  me  how  that  wonderful  field  of 
waving  grain  came  from  the  bare  kernels  of  corn, 
and  I  will  tell  you  how  my  blessed  baby  shall 
rise  an  angel,"  Marion  said  in  tone  so  distinct 
that  it  struck  on  Flossy's  ear  like  a  knell,  "  What 
a  fool !  "  Not  the  speaker,  as  the  dismayed  and 
disappointed  Flossy  supposed,  but  herself. 

"  The  measure  of  every  man  is  his  faith,"  said 
Dr.  Deems.  "  The  greatest  thing  a  human  being 
can  do  is  not  to  perceive,  nor  to  compare,  not  to 
reason^  but  to  believe."  And  again  Marion 
smiled.  If  this  were  true  what  a  pigmy  she 
must  be  !  She  began  to  more  than  suspect  that 
she  was. 

"  Don't  waste  time,"  said  the  Doctor,  "  in  try 
ing  to  reconcile  science  and  the  Bible.  Science 
wasn't  intended  to  teach  religion.  The  Bible 
wasn't  intended  to  teach  science ;  but  wherever 
they  touch  they  agree.  God  sends  his  servants 
—  scientific  men  —  all  abroad  through  nature  to 
gather  facts  with  which  to  illustrate  the  Bible." 

Marion  began  to  write  again,  but  it  was  only 


Mental  Problems.  411 

in  snatches  here  and  there ;  not  that  there  was 
not  that  which  she  longed  to  catch,  but  she 
could  not  write  it  —  the  sentences  just  poured 
forth ;  and  how  perfectly  aglow  with  light  and 
beauty  they  were  !  This  one  sentence  she  pres 
ently  wrote : 

"  In  the  black  ink  of  his  power  God  wrote  the 
Book  of  nature  ;  in  the  red  ink  of  his  love  he 
wrote  the  Bible  ;  and  all  this  power  is  to  bring 
us  all  to  this  love.  Oh,  to  rest  in  arms  like  these  ! 
Are  they  not  strong  enough  ?  " 

Suddenly  Marion  closed  her  book  and  slipped 
her  pencil  into  her  pocket ;  she  could  not  write. 
And  although  she  thrilled  through  every  nerve 
over  the  majestic  sentences  that  followed  and 
was  carried  to  a  pitch  of  enthusiasm  almost  be 
yond  her  control,  when  the  jubilant  thunder  of 
thousands  of  voices  rang  together  in  the  matchless 
closing  words,  "  Blessing,  and  glory,  and  thanks 
giving,  and  honor,  and  power,  and  might,  be  unto 
our  God,  forever  and  ever.  Amen."  She  made 
no  further  attempt  to  write  ;  her  heart  was  full ; 
there  rang  in  it  this  eager  cry,  u  Oh,  to  rest  in 
arms  like  these!"  Strong  enough?  Aye,  in 
deed  !  Doubts  were  forever  set  at  rest.  The 


412  Four   Girls  at   Chautauqua. 

Maker  of  all  nature  could  be  none  other  than 
God,  and  the  God  of  nature  was  the  God  of  the 
Bible.  Jt  was  as  clear  as  the  sunlight.  Reason 
was  forever  satisfied,  but  there  lingered  yet  the 
hungering  cry,  "  Oh,  to  rest  in  arms  like  these  !  " 

And  Flossy  said  not  a  word  to  her  of  the  rest 
ing  place.  Not  because  she  had  not  found  it 
strong  and  safe  ;  not  because  she  did  not  long  to 
have  her  friend  rest  there,  but  because  of  that 
despairing  murmur  in  her  heart.  "  What  is  the 
use  in  saying  any  tiling?  Had  she  not  heard 
with  her  own  ears  Marion's  sneering  sentence  in 
the  face  of  the  unanswerable  arguments  that  had 
been  presented?"  I  wonder  how  often  we  turn 
away  from  harvest  fields  that  are  ready  for  the 
reader  because  we  mistake  for  a  sneer  that  which 
is  the  admission  of  a  convicted  soul  ? 

By  afternoon  Ruth  was  rested  and  ready  for 
meeting;  if  the  truth  be  known  it  was  her 
troubled  brain  which  had  tired  her  body  and 
obliged  her  to  rest.  She  had  begun  to  take  up 
that  problem  of  "  Christian  work."  The  plat 
form  meeting  of  the  evening  before,  and,  more 
than  anything  else,  Dr.  Niles'  address,  had  fanned 
her  heart  into  a  flame  of  desire  to  do  something 


Mental  Problems.  413 

for  the  Master.  But  what  could  she  do?  She 
and  Flossy  had  talked  it  over  together  after  they 
reached  their  room  at  the  hotel;  in  fact  they 
talked  away  into  the  night. 

"I  don't  know,"  Flossy  said,  with  a  little 
laugh,  "but  I  shall  have  to  depend  on  the  4  un 
conscious  influence  '  which  I  exert  to  do  ray 
work  for  me.  I  don't  know  of  anything  which 
I  can  actually  do.  Dr.  Niles  made  a  great  deal 
of  that." 

"  Yes,"  Ruth  said,  "  but  you  see,  Flossy,  the 
people  whose  unconscious  influence  does  any  good 
are  the  ones  after  all  who  are  moving  around  try 
ing  to  do  something.  I  don't  feel  sure  that  he 
lets  the  unconcious  influence  of  the  drones  amount 
to  much,  unless  it  is  in  the  wrong  scale.  Dr. 
Kiles  made  a  good  deal  of  that^  you  remember." 

"  Don't  you  like  him  ever  so  much,  Ruth  ?  " 

"  Wh}~,  yes,"  Ruth  said  again, 'turning  her  pil 
low  wearily.  "  I  liked  him  of  course  ;  how  could 
I  help  it?  But,  after  all,  he  made  me  very  un 
comfortable.  I  seem  to  feel  as  though  I  must 
find  something  to  do.  I  have  a  great  deal  of 
time  to  make  up.  I  tell  you  what  it  is,  Flossy, 
I  wish  you  and  I  could  do  something  for  those 


414  Four  Crirls  at   Ohautauqua. 

two  girls.  Isn't  it  strange  that  they  are  not  in 
terested  ?  " 

"  But  they  are  not."  Flossy  said  it  as  posi 
tively  as  if  she  could  see  right  into  their  hearts. 
"  I  think  Marion  is  worse  than  ever  ;  and  as  for 
Eurie,  she  won't  even  go  to  the  meetings,  you 
know." 

"  I  know.  Perhaps  we  would  only  do  harm 
to  try.  But  what  can  we  do  ?  I  am  sure  I 
don't  see  anything.  And  don't  you  know  how 
clearly  Dr.  Niles  made  it  appear  that  there  was  a 
special  work  for  each  one  ?  " 

So  they  discussed  the  question,  turning  it  over 
and  over,  and  getting  almost  no  light,  coining  to 
feel  themselves  very  useless  and  worthless 
specks  on  the  sea  of  life,  until  late  in  the  night 
Flossy  said : 

"  I'll  tell  you  what  it  is,  Ruth,  we  must  just 
ask  for  work  —  little  bits  of  work,  you  know  — 
and  then  keep  our  eyes  open  until  it  comes.  I 
know  of  things  I  can  do  when  I  get  home." 

"  So  do  I,"  said  Ruth,  "  but  I  want  to  begin 
now." 

Silence  for  a  few  minutes,  and  then  Flossy 
asked : 


Mental  Problems.  415 

"  Ruthie,  have  you  written  to  Mr.  Wa}Tne  ?  " 

"  No,"  said  Ruth,  her  cheeks  flushing  even  in 
the  darkness.  "  I  wrote  a  long  letter  just  be 
fore  this  canie  to  me,  but  I  burned  it,  and  I  ana 
glad  of  it." 

Then  they  went  to  sleep.  But  the  desire  for 
the  work  did  not  fade  with  the  daylight.  Flossy 
had  even  been  tempted  to  say  a  humble  little 
word  to  Marion,  but  had  been  deterred  by  the 
sound  of  that  sneer  of  which  I  told  }*ou ;  and 
Ruth,  lying  on  her  bed,  had  revolved  the  sub 
ject  and  sent  up-  many  an  earnest  prayer,  and 
went  out  to  afternoon  service  resolved  upon 
keeping  her  eyes  very  wide  open. 

The  special  attraction  for  the  afternoon  was  a 
conference  of  primary  class  teachers.  They 
were  out  in  full  force,  and  were  ready  for  any 
questions  that  might  fill  the  hearts  and  the 
mouths  of  eager  learners.  Our  girls  had  each 
their  special  favorites  among  these  leaders. 
Ruth  found  herself  attracted  and  deeply  inter 
ested  in  every  word  that  Mrs.  Clark  uttered. 
Marion  was  making  a  study  of  both  Mrs.  Kuox 
and  Miss  Morris,  and  found  it  difficult  to  tell 
which  attracted  her  most.  Even  Eurie  was 


416  Four  Girls  at  Ohautauqua. 

ready  for  this  meeting.  She  had  never  been 
able  to  shake  off  the  thought  of  Miss  Rider,  and 
her  eager  enthusiasm  in  this  work,  while  Flossy 
had  been  fascinated  and  carried  away  captive  by 
the  magnetic  voice  and  manner  of  Mrs.  Par 
tridge. 

"  She  makes  me  glow,"  Flossy  said,  in  trying 
to  explain  the  feeling  to  the  calmer  Ruth.  "  Her 
life  seems  to  quiver  all  through  me,  and  make 
me  long  to  reach  after  it;  to  have  the  same 
power  which  she  has  over  the  hearts  of  wild  un 
cared-for  children." 

And  Ruth  looked  down  on  the  exquisite  bit 
of  flesh  and  blood  beside  her,  and  thought  of  her 
elegant  home  and  her  elegant  mother,  and  of  all 
the  softening  and  enervating  influences  of  her 
city  life,  and  laughed.  How  little  had  she  in 
common  with  such  a  work  as  that  to  which  Mrs. 
Partridge  had  given  her  soul  ! 

Keeping  her  eyes  open,  as  she  had  planned  to 
do,  this  same  Flossy  saw  as  she  was  passing  down 
the  aisle  the  hungry  face  of  one  of  her  boys,  as 
she  had  mentally  called  the  Arabs  with  whom 
her  life  had  brushed  on  the  Sunday  morning. 
The  word  just  described  it  still,  a  hungry  face, 


Mental  Problems.  417 

like  one  hanging  wistfully  around  the  outskirts 
of  a  feast  in  which  he  had  no  share.  Flossy  lefc 
go  her  hold  of  Ruth's  arm  and  darted  toward 
him. 

"  How  do  you  do  ?  "  she  said,  in  winning  voice, 
before  he  had  even  seen  her.  "  I  am  real  glad 
to  see  you  again.  If  you  will  come  with  me  I 
will  get  a  seat  for  you.  A  lady  is  going  to  speak 
this  afternoon  who  has  five  hundred  boys  in  her 
class  in  Sunday-school." 

Now  the  Flossy  of  two  weeks  ago,  if  she  could 
have  imagined  herself  in  any  such  business,  would 
have  been  utterly  disgusted  with  the  result,  and 
gone  away  with  her  pretty  nose  very  high. 

The  boy  turned  his  dirty  face  toward  her  and 
said,  calmly : 

"  What  a  whopper  !  " 

The  experience  of  a  lifetime  could  not  have  an 
swered  more  deftly : 

"  You  come  and  see.  I  am  almost  certain  she 
will  tell  us  about  some  of  them." 

Still  he  stared,  and  Flossy  waited  with  her 
pretty  face  very  near  to  his,  and  her  pretty  hand 
held  coaxingly  out . 

"Come,"  she  said  again.     And  it  could   not 


418 


Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 


have  been  more  to  the  boy's  surprise  than  it 
was  to  hers  that  he  presently  said: 

"  Well,  go  ahead.  I  can  scud  if  I  don't  like 
it.  I'll  follow." 

And  he  did. 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

WAITING. 

required  Flossy's  eyes  and  heart  both  to 
keep  watch  of  her  boy  during  the  progress 
of  that  meeting.  The  novelty  of  the  scene,  the 
strangeness  of  seeing  ladies  occupying  the  speak 
er's  stand,  kept  him  quiet  and  alert,  until  Mrs. 
Partridge,  that  woman  with  wonderful  power 
over  the  forgotten,  neglected  portion  of  the 
world,  arrested  all  his  bewildering  thoughts  and 
centered  them  on  the  strange  stories  she  had  to 
tell. 

Did  you   ever  hear   her   tell  that   remarkable 

story  of  her  first  attempt  at  controlling  that  re- 

(419) 


420  Four  Girls  at  CJiautauqua. 

markable  class  wliicli  came  under  her  care,  many 
years  ago,  in  St.  Louis  ?  It  is  full  of  wonder 
and  pathos  and  terror  and  fascination,  even  to 
those  who  are  somewhat  familiar  with  such  ex 
periences.  But  Flossy  and  her  boy  had  never 
heard,  or  dreamed  of  its  like.  No,  I  am  wrong  ; 
the  boy  had  dreamed  of  scenes  just  so  wild  and 
daring,  but  even  he  had  not  fancied  that  such 
people  ever  found  their  way  to  Sunday-schools. 

Peanuts,  cigars,  a  pack  of  cards,  and  a  bowie- 
knife  !  Imagine  yourself,  teacher,  to  be  seated 
before  your  orderly  and  courteous  class  of  boys 
next  Sunday  morning  and  find  them  transformed 
into  beings  represented  by  such  surroundings  as 
these !  It  was  Mrs.  Partridge's  experience. 
How  fascinating  that  story  is!  That  one  incor 
rigible  boy,  the  one  with  the  bowie-knife,  the 
one  who  would  make  no  answer  to  her  questions, 
show  no  interest  in  her  stories,  ignore  her  very 
presence  and  go  on  with  his  horrible  mischief, 
until  it  even  came  to  a  stabbing  affray  right  there 
in  the  class-room  I 

Imagine  her  meeting  that  boy  ten  years  after 
ward,  when  he  was  not  only  a  man,  but  a  gentle 
man  ;  not  only  that,  but  a  Christian ;  and  not 


Waiting.  421 

only  that,  but  a  working  Christian,  superintend 
ing  a  mission  Sunday-school,  giving  his  best  en 
ergies  and  his  best  time  to  work  like  that ! 
Think  of  being  told  by  him  that  the  determina 
tion  to  amount  to  something  was  taken  that 
morning,  ten  years  before,  when  he  seemed  not 
to  be  listening  nor  earing  !  What  is  ten  years 
of  Christian  work  when  we  can  hope  for  such  re 
sults  as  that ! 

Flossy  had  forgotten  her  charge;  her  face  was 
all  aglow  ;  so  was  her  heart.  She  knew  more 
about  Christian  work  than  she  did  an  hour  be 
fore.  She  had  learned  that  \ve  must  take  the 
step  that  plainly  comes  next  to  be  taken,  no 
matter  for  the  darkness  of  the  day  and  the  ap 
parent  gloom  of  the  future.  Work  is  ours ;  re 
sults  are  God's.  This  life  business  is  divided. 
Partnership  with  God.  Nothing  but  the  work  to 
do  ;  so  that  it  is  done  to  the  utmost  limit  of  our 
best,  the  responsibility  is  the  Lord's.  That  was 
blessed  !  She  could  dare  to  try. 

Meantime  the  boy.  He  had  listened  in  utmost 
silence,  and  with  eyes  that  never  for  an  instant 
left  the  speaker's  face !  When  the  spell  was 
broken  he  drew  a  long  sigh,  and  this  was  his 
mighty  conclusion: 


422  Four  Girls  at  Ohautauqua. 

"  That  chap  was  enough  sight  meaner  than  I'd 
ever  be,  and  yet  he  got  to  be  some !  I'll  be 
blamed  if  I  don'fc  see  what  can  be  done  in  that 
line  I  " 

A  small  beginning  ;  so  small  that  on  Flossy's 
face  it  excited  only  smiles.  She  was  ignorant, 
you  know.  To  Mrs.  Partridge  that  sentence 
would  have  been  worth  a  wedge  of  gold.  But 
it  is  possible  that  Flossy's  first  simple  little  reach 
after  work  may  have  fruit  to  bear. 

It  is  difficult  to  begin  to  tell  about  that  next 
day  at  Chautauqua.  There  was  so  much  crowded 
into  it  that  it  would  almost  make  a  little  book  of 
itself.  The  morning  was  spent  by  a  large  class 
of  people  in  a  state  of  excited  unrest  and  expect 
ancy.  The  sensible  ones  by  the  hundreds,  and 
indeed  I  suppose  I  may  say  by  the  thousands, 
went  to  the  morning  service,  as  usual,  and  heard 
the  children's  sermon,  delivered  by  Dr.  Newton  ; 
and  those  who  did  not,  and  who  afterward  had 
the  misfortune  to  fall  in  with  those  who  did,  be 
moaned  their  folly  in  not  doing  likewise.  On 
the  whole,  the  children,  and  those  who  had 
brains  enough  to  become  children  for  the  time 
being,  were  the  only  comfortable  ones  at  Chau 
tauqua  that  Saturday  morning. 


Waiting.  423 

The  president  was  coming !  So,  apparently, 
was  the  rest  of  the  world !  Oh,  the  throngs  and 
throngs  that  continually  arrived !  It  of  itself 
was  a  rare  and  never-to-be-forgotten  novelty  to 
those  who  had  never  in  their  lives  before  seen 
such  a  vast  army  of  human  beings  gathered  into 
a  small  space,  and  all  perfectly  quiet  andvcorrect, 
and  even  courteous  in  their  deportment. 

"  Where  are  the  drunken  men  ?  "  said  Marion, 
looking  around  curiously  on  the  constantly  in 
creasing  throng.  "  We  always  read  of  them  as 
being  in  great  crowds." 

*'  Yes,  and  the  people  who  swear,"  added  Eu- 
rie.  "  I  haven't  heard  an  oath  this  morning,  and 
I  have  roamed  around  everywhere.  I  must  say 
Chautauqua  will  bear  off  the  palm  for  getting 
together  a  most  respectable-looking,  well-be 
haved  '  rabble  ! '  That  is  what  I  overheard  a 
sour-looking  old  gentleman,  who  doesn't  approve 
of  having  a  president  —  or  of  letting  him  come" 
to  a  religious  meeting,  I  don't  know  which  — 
say  would  rush  in  to-daj~.  It  certainly  is  a  re 
markably  orderly  'rush/  Girls,  look  at  Dr. 
Vincent!  I  declare,  Chautauqua  has  paid, just 
to  watch  him  !  He  ought  to  be  the  president 


424  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

himself.  I  mean  to  vote  for  him  when  female 
suffrage  comes  in.  Or  a  king  !  Wouldn't  he 
make  a  grand  king  ?  How  he  would  enjoy  or 
dering  the  subjects  and  enforcing  his  laws!  '' 

"  All  of  which  he  seems  able  to  do  now,"  Mar 
ion  said.  "  I  don't  believe  he  would  thank  you 
for  a  vote.  His  realm  is  large  enough,  and  he 
seems  to  have  willing  subjects." 

"  He  has  go-ahead-a-tive-ness."  Eurie  said. 
"What  is  the  proper  word  for  that,  school- 
ma'am  ?  Executive  ability,  that's  it.  Those  are 
splendid  words,  and  they  ought  to  be  added  to 
his  name.  I  tell  you  what,  girls,  I  wish  we 
could  cut  him  up  into  seven  men,  and  take  him 
home  with.  us.  Seven  first-class  men  made  out 
of  him  and  distributed  through  the  towns  about 
us  would  make  a  new  order  of  things." 

All  this  was  being  said  while  they  were  scram 
bling  with  the  rest  of  the  world  down  to  the  au 
ditorium  to  secure  seats,  for  the  grand  afternoon 
had  arrived,  and  people  had  been  advised  to  be 
"  in  their  seats  as  soon  after  one  o'clock  as  they 
could  make  it  convenient." 

"How  soon  will  that  be,  I  wonder?"  Mar 
ion  said,  quoting  this  sentence  from  Dr.  Via- 


Waiting.  426 

cent's  advice  given  in  the  morning,  and  holding 
up  her  watch  to  show  that  it  was  five  minutes  of 
one. 

"  It  looks  to  me  as  though  those  deluded  be 
ings  who  arrive  here  at  one  o'clock  will  have 
several  hours  of  patient  waiting  before  they  will 
make  it  convenient  to  secure  seats.  Just  stand 
a  minute,  girls,  and  look !  It  is  worth  seeing. 
Away  back,  just  as  far  as  I  can  see,  there  is  noth 
ing  but  heads  !  The  aisles  are  full,  and  space 
between  the  seats,  and  the  office  is  full,  and  the 
people  are  just  pouring  down  from  the  hill  in  a 
continuous  stream.  To  look  that  way  }-ou 
wouldn't  think  that  any  had  got  down  here 
yet ! " 

Now  I  really  wish  I  had  a  photograph  of  that 
gathering  of  people  to  put  right  in  here,  on  this 
page  !  Many  of  them  would  have  looked  much 
better  at  this  point  than  they  did  after  four 
hours  of  patient  Avaiting.  How  that  crowd  did 
fidget  and  fix  and  change  position,  as  far  as  it 
was  possible  to  change,  when  there  was  not  an 
inch  of  unoccupied  space.  How  they  talked  and 
laughed  and  sang  and  grumbled  and  yawned, 
and  sang  again  ! 


426  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

It  was  a  tedious  waiting.  It  had  its  irresisti 
bly  comic  side.  There  were  those  among  the 
Chautauqua  girls  who  could  see  the  comic  side 
of  things  with  very  little  trouble.  The  material 
out  of  which  they  made  some  of  their  fun  might 
have  appeared  very  meager  to  orderly,  decorous 
people.  But  they  made  it. 

What  infinite  sport  they  got  out  of  the  fidgety 
lady  before  them,  who  could  not  get  herself  and 
her  three  children  seated  to  her  mind !  Those 
ladies  who  labored  so  industriously  in  order  that 
the  nation's  flags,  draping  the  stand,  should  float 
gracefully  over  the  nation's  chief,  were  an  al 
most  inexhaustible  source  of  amusement  to  our 
girls. 

"Look!"  said  Eurie,  "that  arrangement 
doesn't  suit ;  some  of  the  stars  are  hidden ;  see 
them  twitch  it ;  it  will  be  down !  Now  that  one 
has  it  looped  just  to  her  fancy.  No  !  I  declare, 
there  it  comes  down  again !  The  other  one 
twitched  it  this  time ;  they  are  not  of  the  same 
mind.  Girls,  do  look !  It  is  fun  to  watch  them  ; 
they  work  as  though  the  interests  of  this  meet 
ing  all  turned  on  a  light  arrangement  of  that 
flag." 


Waiting.  427 

By  this  time  the  attention  of  the  girls  was  en 
gaged,  and  the  number  of  witty  remarks  that 
were  made  at  the  expense  of  those  flags  would 
no  doubt  have  disconcerted  the  earnest  workers 
thereat  could  they  have  heard  them. 

The  hours  waned,  and  the  president  did  not 
arrive.  The  waiters  essayed  to  sing,  but  to  lead 
such  an  army  of  people  was  a  difficult  task,  es- 
peciali}r  when  there  was  no  one  to  lead.  Such 
singing ! 

"  We  came  out  ahead,  anyhow !  "  said  Flossy, 
stopping  to  laugh. 

Five  or  six  thousand  people  had  finished  their 
verse,  while  five  or  six  thousand  in  the  rear  were 
in  the  third  line  of  it. 

"  We  need  Mr.  Bliss  or  Mr.  Sherwin  or  some- 
lody"  said  Ruth.  "  What  a  pity  that  they  have 
all  gone,  and  Dr.  Tourjee  hasn't  come  !  I  thought 
he  was  to  be  here." 

Presently  came  a  singer  to  their  rescue.  The 
girls  did  not  know  who  he  was,  but  he  led  well, 
and  the  singing  became  decidedly  enjoyable. 
Suddenly  he  disappeared,  and. they  went  back 
again  into  utter  confusion.  They  stopped  sing 
ing  and  began  to  grumble. 


428  Four  G-irls  at  Cliautauqua. 

"  Queer  arrangements,  anyhow,"  said  a  smij-- 
looking  man  in  front.  "  Why  didn't  they  have 
a  speaker  ready  to  address  this  throng,  instead 
of  keeping  us  waiting  here  with  nothing  to  en 
tertain  us  ?  " 

"  I  know  it,"  said  Marion,  briskly,  addressing 
herself  to  her  party.  "  Dr.  Vincent  has  not  used 
his  accustomed  foresight.  He  ought  to  have 
known  that  the  presidential  party  would  be 
three  hours  late,  and  filled  up  the  programme 
with  speeches,  especially  since  there  has  been 
such  a  dearth  of  speech-making  during  the  past 
two  weeks.  We  are  really  hungry  for  an  ad 
dress  !  I  don't  know  who  would  have  under 
taken  the  task,  however,  unless  they  sent  for 
Gabriel  or  some  other  celestial.  I  know  I  have 
no  desire  to  listen  to  a  coaimon  mortal." 

Before  them  sat  a  lady  absorbed  in  a  book. 
During  the  singing  she  joined  heartily,  and  when 
Dr.  Vincent  came,  on  one  of  his  numerous  jour 
neys  to  try  to  encourage  the  crowd  with  the  in 
formation  that  the  party  waited  for  had  not  yet 
arrived,  she  looked  and  listened  with  the  rest, 
but  always  with  her  finger  between  the  leaves, 
as  if  the  place  was  too  interesting  to  be  lost. 


Waiting.  429 

Ernie's  curiosity  rose  to  such  a  pitch  that  she 
leaned  forward  for  a  peep  at  the  title-page,  and 
drew  back  suddenly.  It  was  a  copy  of  the 
Teacher's  Bible ! 

A  silence  fell  upon  the  company  near  the 
front,  broken  suddenly  by  an  old  lady  who 
leaned  lovingly  toward  her  chubby -faced  grand 
son,  and  said : 

"Frankie,  you  must  look  in  a  few  minutes 
and  you  will  see  the  President  of  the  United 
States." 

"  That  is  good  news,  anyhow7,"  spoke  forth  a 
rough-looking,  good-natured  man  near  by,  and 
the  listeners,  who  were  in  that  excited  state  of 
weariness  and  waiting  that  they  were  ready  to 
laugh  or  cry  as  the  slightest  occasion  offered, 
burst  forth  into  roars  of  laughter,  which  rang 
back  among  the  crowds  behind  and  enticed 
them  to  join,  though  I  suppose  not  twenty  of  the 
laughers  knew  what  the  joke  was,  if  indeed  there 
was  one. 

A  sudden  rush.  Some  one  occupied  the 
stand.  A  notice. 

"  A  telegram  !  "  said  a  ringing  voice.  "  For 
Mrs.  C.  G.  Hammond.  Marked  — *  Death  1 ' " 


430  Four   Grirls  at   Cliautauqua. 

A  sympathetic  murmur  ran  through  the  great 
company,  as  they  moved  and  wedged  and  fell 
back,  and  did  almost  impossible  things,  to  make  a 
road  out  of  that  dense  throng  of  humanity  for 
the  one  to  whom  the  president  had  suddenly  be 
come  an  insignificance. 

Just  then  came  the  "Wyoming  Trio."  Bless 
ings  on  them,  whoever  they  are.  Nothing  ever 
could  have  fitted  in  more  splendidly  than  they 
did  just  there  and  then.  And  the  singing  rested 
and  helped  them  all. 

Now  a  sensation  came  in  the  shape  of  a  poem 
that  had  been  written  for  the  occasion,  and  was 
to  be  learned  to  sing  in  greeting  to  the  presi 
dent.  How  they  rang  those  jubilant  words 
through  those  old  trees !  Tender,  touching 
words,  with  the  Cliautauqua  key-note  quivering 
all  through  them. 

"  Greet  him  !     Let  the  air  around  him 

Benedictions  bear ; 
Let  the  hearts  of  all  the  people 

Circle  him  with  prayer." 

"  I  wonder  if  he  realizes  what  a  blessed  thing 
t  is  to  be  circled  with  prayer?"  said  she  of  the 
Teacher's  Bible,  turning  a  thoughtful  face  upon 


Waiting.  431 

the  four  girls  who  had  attracted  her  attention. 

"  I  wonder  who  Mary  A.  Lathbury  is  ?  "  said 
Eurie,  reading  from  the  poem.  "  She  is  a  poet, 
whoever  she  is.  There  isn't  a  line  in  this  that 
is  simply  rhyme.  I  doubt  if  the  president  ever 
had  such  a  rhythmical  tribute  as  that." 

"  She  is  the  lady  with  blue  eyes  and  curls  who 
designs  the  pictures  in  that  charming  child's 
paper  which  flutters  around  here.  I  have  for 
gotten  the  name  of  it,  but  the  pictures  are  little 
poems  themselves." 

This  was  Flossy's  bit  of  information. 

"  Which  designs  them,  the  blue  eyes  or  the 
curls?"  Marion  asked,  gravely.  And  then  these 
four  simpletons  burst  into  a  merry  laugh. 

Still  the  president  did  not  appear.  The  audi 
ence  had  exhausted  their  resources  and  their  good 
humor.  Ominous  grumblings  and  cross  faces 
began  to  predominate.  Some  darkly  hinted  that 
he  was  not  coming  at  all,  and  that  this  was  a  de 
sign  to  draw  the  immense  crowd  together.  No 
body -believed  it,  but  many  were  in  a  mood  to 
pretend  that  they  did. 

"  I  never  believed  in  this  thing,"  ssaid  a  tall, 
dark-faced,  solemn-featured  man,  speaking  in  a 


432  Four   Girls  at  Chaulauqua. 

voice  loud  enough  to  interest  the  crowd  in  front. 
"  This  sensation  business  I  don't  believe  in ! 
What  do  we  want  of  the  president  here  !  Who 
cares  to  see  him  ?  I  don't  like  it;  I  believe  it  is 
all  wrong,  turning  a  religious  meeting  upside 
down  for  a  sensation,  and  I  told  them  so." 

Our  friend  Marion,  you  will  remember,  was 
gifted  with  a  clear  voice  and  a  saucy  tongue. 

"  If  he  doesn't  like  it,"  she  said,  quickly,  "  and 
doesn't  want  to. see- the  president,  why  do  }^ou 
suppose  he  has  kept  one  of  the  best  chairs  for 
four  mortal  hours  ?  Don't  you  think  that  is  self 
ish?". 

Which  sentence  caused  ripples  of  laughter  all 
about  them,  and  quenched  the  solemn-visaged 
man. 

But  it  was  growing  serious,  this  waiting.  It 
was  a  great  army  of  people  to  be  kept  at  rest, 
and  though  they  had  been  quiet  and  decorous 
enough  thus  far,  it  was  not  to  be  presumed  that 
they  were  all  people  governed  by  nice  shades  of 
propriety.  Would  the  disappointment  break  forth 
into  any  disagreeable  demonstrations9  Dr.  Vin 
cent  had  done  what  he  could ;  he  had  appeared 
promptly  on  the  arrival  of  dispatches,  and  given 


Waiting.  433 

the  latest  news  that  the  telegraph  and  the  tele 
scope  would  send.  But  what  can  any  mortal 
man  do  who  has  arranged  for  people  to  come 
who  do  not  come,  except  wait  for  them  with 
what  patience  he  can  command. 

At  this  ominous  moment  he  appeared  before 
them  again.  Not  a  notice  this  time  ;  something 
which  shone  in  his  eyes  and  quivered  in  every 
vein  and  rang  in  his  trumpet-like  voice.  Thia 
what  he  said. 


CHAPTER  XXX. 


SETTLED   QUESTIONS. 

[EAR  FRIENDS  :  I  should  bear  a  bur 
den  on  my  conscience,  if  I  did  not  come 
to  you  to-day  with  the  4  old,  old  story.' 

"  Over  the  tent  which  has  been  prepared  for  the 
President  of  the  United  States  there  glows,  done 
in  evergreen,  this  single  word,  '  rest .' 

"  As  I  pass  it,  I  am  reminded  of  another  and  a 
different  rest:  the  rest  from  every  burden, 
every  anxiety,  every  pain,  every  sin ;  who  has 
rested  in  those  everlasting  arms?  There  is  com 
ing  a  day  when  all  this  throng  of  human  life 
gathered  here  shall  wait  for  the  coming  of  the 

King.     Yea,  even  the  '  King  of  kings.'     Should 
(434) 


Settled  Questions.  435 

that  time  be  to-day,  who  is  ready  ?  Do  you 
know  his  power?  Do  you  know  his  grace?  Do 
you  know  his  love?  Through  the  atonement  of 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  every  one  of  yo u  may 
have  that  King  for  your  father;  I  am  commis 
sioned,  this  day,  to  bring  this  invitation  to  each 
one  of  you ;  '  Come  unto  me  all  ye  that  are 
heavy  laden,  and  I  will  give  }-ou  rest.'  Will 
you  come  ?  *  *  *  *  Pardon  this  interruption  — 
no,  I  \vill  not  ask  your  pardon  :  it  is  never  an  in 
terruption  to  bring  good  news  from  the  King  to 
his  subjects.  I  will  not  weary  you  with  a  long 
presentation ;  I  have  only  this  message :  -yon 
are  all  invited  to  come  to  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
and  be  saved  from  every  possible  calamity  ;  you 
are  all  invited  to  come  now.  I  am  going  to  ask 
the  Tennesseeans  to  sing  one  of  my  favorites : 

"  '  Brother,  don't  stay  away ; 

For  my  Lord  says  there's  room  enough, 

Room  enough  in  the  heaven  for  you.' " 

Never  were  tender  words  more  tenderly  sung  I 
Never  did  they  steal  out  upon  the  hearts  of  a 
more  hushed  and  solemn  audience.  That  match- 


436  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

less  word  of  gospel  had  touched  home.  There 
were  those  in  the  crowd  who  had  never  realized 
before  that  the  invitation  was  for  them. 

Following  the  hymn  came  another,  suggested 
also  by  Dr.  Vincent:  "Steal  away  to  Jesus." 
It  is  one  of  the  sweetest  as  well  as  one  of  the 
strangest  of  African  melodies ;  and  as  the  ten 
der  message  floated  up  among  the  trees,  a  strange 
hush  settled  over  the  listeners;  many  tears  were 
quietly  wiped  away  from  eyes  unused  to  weeping. 

"  Now  sing  4  Almost  persuaded,' "  said  Dr.  Vin 
cent,  his  own  voice  tremulous  with  his  highly 
wrought  feeling.  Many  voices  took  that  up. 
Even  the  Chautauqua  girls  sang,  all  but  Eurie. 
With  the  sentence : 

"  Seems  now  some  soul  to  say, 

Go,  spirit,  go  thy  way ; 
Some  more  convenient  day 

On  thee  I'll  call." 

Flossy  turned  her  anxious,  appealing  eyes  on 
Eurie,  but  she  was  laughing  merrily  over  the  at 
tempt  of  a  feeble  old  man  near  her  to  join  in 
the  song,  and  Flossy  whispered  sadly  to  Ruth : 


Settled  Questions.  437 

"  Earie  has  not  even  as  much  interest  as  that." 

The  spell  of  the  message  and  the  music  lin- 
gerefl,  even  after  Dr.  Vincent  had  gone  again. 
There  was  no  more  grumbling ;  there  was  very 
little  laughing;  a  subdued  spirit  seemed  to 
brood  over  the  great  company. 

"  We  could  almost  have  a  revival,  right  here," 
said  one  thoughtful  man,  looking  with  searching 
eyes,  up  and  down  the  sea  of  faces. 

"  I  tell  you,  no  grander  opportunity  was  ever 
more  grandly  improved  than  by  those  few  words 
of  Dr.  Vincent's.  They  touched  bottom.  He 
will  meet  those  words  again  with  joy,  or  I  am 
mistaken." 

But  the  waiting  was  over ;  suddenly  the  Chau- 
tauqua  bells  began  to  peal ;  strains  of  martial 
music,  and  the  roll  of  drums,  mingled  with  the 
booming  of  cannon  ;  and  almost  before  they  were 
aware,  even  after  all  their  waiting,  twenty  thou 
sand  people  stood  face  to  face  with  their  nation's 
chief. 

"When  the  president's  head  appears  above 
this  platform,  I  hope  it  will  thunder  here,"  had 
been  Dr.  Vincent's  suggestion  several  hours  be 
fore. 

Thunder  I    That  was  no  comparison !     I  hope 


438  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

even  lie  was  -satisfied.  Then  how  that  song  of 
greeting  rung  out ;  tender  still,  even  in  its 
power:  "  Let  the  hearts  of  all  the  people  'cir 
cle  him  with  prayer."  No  better  gift  for  him 
than  that. 

After  the  cheering  and  the  singing,  and  the 
very  brief  speech  from  the  president  himself, 
came  the  address  of  welcome  by  Dr.  Fowler  of 
Chicago.  His  first  sentence  sent  the  multitude 
into  another  storm  of  cheers.  Said  he  :  "  The 
work  that  I  thought  to  do,  has  been  done  by 
twent}r  thousand  people."  How  could  they  help 
doing  it  again  after  that  ?  Chautauqua  had  not 
dropped  her  colors  in  this  plan  of  an  afternoon 
given  to  the  president. 

The  address  of  welcome  from  first  to  last  rang 
with  the  gospel  inviUtiou,  "  come  ;  "  no  better 
word  than  that  even  for  their  chief  ;  "  honor  to 
whom  honor  is  due,"  quoted  the  speaker,  and 
then  followed  his  graceful  tribute,  but  it  closed 
with  a  tender,  dignified,  earnest  appeal  to  the 
President  of  the  United  States  to  'rest'  in  the 
same  refuge,  to  enlist  under  the  same  flag,  to  be 
loj^al  to  the  same  Chief,  whom  they  were  met  to 
serve. 

"  Out  of  my  heart,"  said  he:  "  as  a  man  who 


Settled  Questions.  439 

recognizes  God  as  the  supreme  ruler  of  us  all,  I 
bid  you  come  with  us,  and  we  will  do  you  good, 
for  the  Lord  hath  spoken  good  concerning  Is 
rael." 

Poor  Eurie  !  What  a  place  she  had  chosen  if 
she  desired  to  hear  no  more  preaching.  What 
were  all  these  exercises,  but  sermons,  one  after 
the  other,  strong  warm  unanswerable  appeals  to 
be  loyal  to  the  Great  Chief?  Certainly  Dr. 
Deems  was  not  the  man  to  forget  the  Greater  in 
his  greeting  to  the  under  ruler ;  nor  did  he. 

"  Let  me  speak  to  you  in  closing,"  said  he, 
"  to  you  and  to  this  assembly,  out  of  my  heart. 
We  shall  never  all  stand  together  again,  until 
that  great  white  throne  shall  stop  in  mid  heav 
ens,  and  we  shall  stand  to  meet  the  Chiefest  of 
all  chiefs.  O  men  and  brethren,  shall  we  not 
all  prepare  to  meet  there  ?  Mr.  President,  every 
day  prayer  is  made  for  you  ;  we  are  hoping  to  . 
meet  with  you  in  heaven.  Brave  men  who 
stood  beside  you  in  the  late  war,  and  have  gone 
on  ahead,  are  hoping  to  greet  you  there.  May 
you  have  a  good  life,  a  happy  life,  a  blessed  life  ; 
and  may  other  tongues  more  eloquent  than  mine, 
more  eloquent  than  even  my  brother's  who  pre- 


440  Four  Girls  at  Ohautauqua. 

ceded  me,  bid  you  welcome  one  day  to  the  gen 
eral  assembly  of  the  first  born.  Arnen  and 
amen." 

What  could  better  close  the  matchless  greet 
ings  than  to  have  the  Tennesseeans  circle  round 
their  president  and  sing  again  that  ringing  cho 
rus  : 

"  I've  been  redeemed, 
Been  washed  in  the  blood  of  the  Lamb." 

"I  don't  know  what  will  become  of  the 
grumblers,"  Marion  said  as  they  rested  in  various 
stages  of  dishabille,  and  talked  the  exciting  scenes 
over.  "  They  have  been  shamefully  left  in  the 
lurch  ;  they  were  going  to  have  this  affair  a  de 
moralizing  dissipation  from  first  to  last,  unwor 
thy  of  the  spirit  of  Chautauqua.  And  if  more 
solemn,  or  more  searching,  or  more  effective 
preaching  could  be  crowded  into  an  afternoon 
than  has  been  done  here,  I  should  like  to  be 
shown  how.  What  do  you  think  of  your  choice 
of  entertainments,  Eurie?  You  thought  it  would 
be  safe  to  attend  the  president's  reot-plion,  you 
remember." 

"I  don't  tell  all  I  think,"  Eurie  answered 


Settled  Questions.  441 

and  then  she  went  out  among  the  trees. 

Truth  to  tell,  Eurie  had  heard  that  from  which 
she  could  not  get  away.  Dr.  Vincent's  words 
were  still  sounding,  "  you  are  invited  to  come  to 
Jesus  and  be  saved ;  you  are  invited  to  come 
now."  There  had  been  nothing  to  dissipate  that 
impression,  everything  to  deepen  it,  and  the 
thought  that  clung  and  repeated  itself  to  her 
heart  was  that  plaintive  wail : 

"  Almost  persauded,  now  to  believe." 

That  was  certainly  herself ;  she  felt  it,  knew 
it ;  in  the  face  of  that  knowledge  think  how  sol 
emn  the  words  grew : 

"  Almost  will  not  prevail, 
Almost  is  but  to  fail ; 
Sad,  sad  that  bitter  wail, 
Almost, — but  lost  !„ 

Was  that  for  her,  too  ?  In  short,  Eurie  out 
there  alone,  among  the  silent  trees,  felt  and  ad 
mitted  this  fact :  that  the  time  had  actually  come 
to  her  when  this  question  must  be  decided,  either 
for  or  against,  and  decided  forever. 


442  Four    Girls  at  Ohautauqua. 

Sunday  morning  at  Chautauqua  !  A  white 
day.  There  can  be  none  of  all  that  throng  who 
spent  the  15th  day  of  August,  1875,  in  that  sacred 
place,  who  remember  it  without  a  thrill.  A  per 
fect  day  !  Glorious  and  glowing  sunshine  every 
where  ;  and  beauty,  such  perfect  beauty  of  lake 
and  grove  !  The  God  of  nature  smiled  lovingly 
on  Chautauqua  that  morning. 

Our  girls  seemed  to  think  that  the  perfect  day 
required  perfection  of  attire,  and  it  was  notice 
able  that  the  taste  of  each  settled  on  spotless 
white,  without  color  or  ornament,  other  than  a 
spray  of  leaves  and  grasses,  which  one  and  an 
other  of  them  gathered  almost  without  knowing 
it,  and  placed  in  belt  or  hair.  Outward  calm, 
but  inward  unrest,  at  least  so  far  as  some  were 
concerned ;  Marion  Wilbur  among  the  number. 

It  was  a  very  heavy  heart  that  she  carried  that 
day.  There  was  no  unbelief;  that  demon  was 
conquered.  Instead  there  was  an  overpowering, 
terrible  certainty.  And  now  came  Satan  with 
the  whole  of  her  past  life  which  had  turned  to 
sin  before  her,  and  hurled  it  on  her  poor  shrink 
ing  shoulders,  until  she  felt  almost  to  faint  be 
neath  the  load  ;  she  lay  miserably  on  her  bed, 


Settled  Questions.  443 

and  thought  that  she  would  not  add  to  her  bur 
den  by  going  to  the  service,  that  she  knew  al 
ready  too  much.  But  an  appeal  from  Flossy  to 
keep  her  company,  as  the  others  had  gone,  had 
the  effect  of  changing  her  mind. 

Armed  each  with  a  camp-chair,  they  made 
their  way  to  the  stand,  after  the  great  congrega 
tion  were  seated.  A  fortunate  thought  those 
camp-chairs  had  been  ;  there  was  not  a  vacant 
seat  anywhere. 

Marion  placed  her  chair  out  of  sight  both  of 
stand  and  speaker,  but  within  hearing,  and  gave  • 
herself  up  to  her  own  troubled  thoughts,  until 
the  opening  exercises  were  concluded  and  the 
preacher  announced  his  text :  "  The  place  that 
is  called  Calvary." 

She  roused  a  little  and  tried  to  determine 
whose  voice  it  was,  it  had  a  familiar  sound,  but 
she  could  not  be  sure,  and  she  tried  to  go  back 
to  the  useless  questionings  of  her  own  heart; 
but  she  could  not.  She  could  never  be  deaf  to 
eloquence  ;  whoever  the  speaker  was,  there  was 
that  in  his  very  opening  sentences  which  roused 
and  held  her.  Whatever  he  had  to  say,  whether 
or  not  it  was  anything  that  had  to  do  with  her, 


444  Four  Girls  at  Cliautauqua. 

she  must  listen.     Still  the  wonderment  existed 
as  to  which  voice  it  was. 

But  when  he  reached  the  sentences  :  "  Jump 
the  ages !  Come  down  here  to  Chautauqua  Lake 
to-day,  O  Son  of  God  !  O  Son  of  Man !  O  Son  of 
Mary  I  When  the  prophet  of  old  said,  "  He 
shall  see  of  the  travail  of  his  soul  and  shall  be 
satisfied,"  did  he  look  along  the  centuries  and 
see  the  gathered  thousands  here,  who  have  just 
sung,  'Tell  me  the  old,  old  story'?  What 
story?  Why,  the  story  of  the  place  that  is  called 
Calvary ! " —  Marionleaned  forward  and  addressed 
the  person  next  to  her. 

"  Isn't  that  Dr.  Deems  ?  "  she  said. 

"  Yes  indeed  !  "  was  the  answer,  spoken  with 
enthusiasm. 

And  Marion  drew  back,  and  listened.  That 
sermon !  Marion  tried  to  report  it,  but  it  was 
like  trying  to  report  the  roll  of  the  waves  on  the 
Atlantic ;  she  could  only  listen  with  beating 
heart  and  flushing  cheek.  Presently  she  list 
ened  with  a  new  interest,  for  the  divisions  of  the 
subject  were :  "  God's  thought  of  sin,"  and 
"  God's  thought  of  mercy."  Though  the  morn 
ing  was  warm,  she  shivered  and  drew  her  wrap 


Settled  Questions.  445 

closer  about  her.  "  God's  thought  of  sin  I  She 
was  in  a  mood  to  comprehend  in  a  measure  what 
a  fearful  thought  it  might  be. 

"  Some  men,"  said  the  speaker,  "  make  light 
of  sin."  Yes,  she  had  done  it  herself.  "  Where 
shall  we  learn  what  God  thinks  of  it?  On  Si 
nai?  No.  God  spoke  there  in  thunder  and 
lightning,  till  the  very  hills  shook  and  trembled. 

"  And  what  were  they  doing  down  below  ? 
Dancing  around  a  golden  calf !  I  tell  you  it  is 
only  at  Calvary  that  we  can  learn  God's  idea  of 
bin.  For  at  Calvary,  because  of  sin,  God  the 
Father  surrendered  his  communion  with  God 
the  Sou,  and  on  Calvary  God  died  !  Will  God 
ever  forgive  sin  ?  Many  a  one  has  carried  that 
question  around  in  his  soul  until  it  burned 
there." 

Now  you  can  imagine  how  Marion  tried  no 
more  to  write ;  thought  no  more  about  elo 
quence  ;  this  question,  which  had  become  to  her 
the  one  terrible  question  of  life,  was  being  looked 
into. 

"  How  will  we  find  out  ?  Go  by  science  into 
nature,  and  there's  no  proof  of  it ;  God  never 
forgives  what  seems  to  be  the  mistake  of  even  a 
reptile !  " 


446  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

I  cannot  tell  you  about  the  rest  of  that  sermon. 
I  took  no  notes  of  it ;  my  notes  ended  abruptly 
in  the  middle  of  a  sentence ;  one  cannot  write 
out  words  that  are  piercing  to  their  hearts.  I 
doubt  if  even  Marion  "Wilbur  can  give  you  any 
satisfactory  account  of  the  wording  of  the  sen 
tences.  And  yet  Marion  Wilbur  rose  up  at  its 
close,  with  cheeks  aglow  not  only  with  tears, 
but  smiles ;  and  the  question,  '  Will  God  ever 
forgive  sin  ?  "  she  could  answer. 

There  was  a  place  where  the  burden  would 
roll  awa}T.  "At  the  place  called  Calvary."  She 
knew  it,  believed  it,  felt  it,  —  why  should  she 
not?  She  had  been  there  in  very  deed,  that 
summer  morning.  He  had  seen  again  of  the 
travail  of  his  soul,  he  was  one  soul  nearer  to  be 
ing  satisfied. 

There  were  other  matters  of  interest:  those 
two  Bibles,  symbol  of  the  Chautauqua  pulse, — 
that  were  presented  to  the  nation's  highest  offi 
cer  ;  the  address  which  accompanied  them  — 
simple,  earnest  gospel;  the  hymn  they  sang, — • 
everything  was  full  of  interest.  But  Marion  let 
it  pass  by  her  like  the  sound  of  music,  and  the 
words  in  her  heart  that  kept  time  to  it  all  were 
the  closing  words  of  that  sermon : 


Settled  Questions.  447 

"  Here  I  could  forever  stay, 
Sit  and  sing  my  life  away. 
This  is  more  than  life  to  me, 
Lovely,  mournful  Calvary." 

It  was  so,  all  day.  She  went  to  the  afternoon 
service  ;  she  listened  to  Dr.  Fowler's  sermon, 
not  as  she  had  ever  listened  to  one  before ;  the 
sermon  for  the  first  time  was  for  her.  When 
people  listen  for  themselves,  there  is  a  difference. 
She  felt  fed  and  strengthened  ;  she  joined  in  the 
singing  as  her  voice  had  never  joined  before  ; 
they  were  singing  about  her  Saviour.  Then  she 
went  back  to  her  tent. 

"  I  am  not  going  to-night,"  she  said  to  the 
girls.  "  I  am  full,  I  want  nothing  more  to-day.' 

"  Preached  out,  I  declare  !  "  said  Eurie.  "  Are 
you  going  to  write  out  your  report  for  the  pa 
per  ?  I  wouldn't,  Marion.  I  would  go  to  the 
meeting.  I  am  going." 

"  No,"  said  Marion  in  answer  to  the  question, 
and  smiling  at  the  thought.  How  strange  it 
would  seem  to  her  to  spend  this  Sabbath  even 
ing  thus.  How  many  had  she  so  spent  I 

" 1  am  glad  to-morrow  is  the  last  day,"  she 


448  Four  Grirls  at  Chautauqua. 

said,  sinking  into  a  chair ;  "  I  want  to  go  home." 
And  Flossy  and  Ruth  looked  at  each  other, 
and  sighed.  How  well  these  girls  understood 
one  anotl'er!  Why  can't  people  be  frank  and 
speak  so  that  they  can  be  understood  ? 

Suppose  Marion  had  said :  "  No,  I  am  not  go 
ing  to  write  my  report,  I  am  going  to  pray." 
Suppose  she  had  said ;  "  Yes,  I  want  to  go  home 
to  practice" 


CHAPTER  XXXI. 


THE  BEGINNING  OF   THE  END. 


T  is  a  troublesome  fact  that,  even  when 
people  are  very  much  interested,  and 
very  eager  over  important  themes,  commonplace 
and  comparatively  trivial  duties,  will  intrude, 
and  insist  upon  being  done  at  that  moment. 
For  instance,  our  girls  were  obliged  to  spend  the 
whole  of  Monday  morning  in  packing  their 
trunks  and  satchels,  returning  their  furniture, 
settling  for  their  tents,  and  the  like ;  in  short, 
breaking  up  housekeeping  and  getting  ready  to 
go  back  to  the  civilized  world. ,  Flossy  and  Ruth 

dispatched  their  part  at  the  hotel  promptly  and 

(449) 


450  Four  Girls  at  CJiautauqua. 

came  over  to  the  grounds  to  help  the  others. 
They  discussed  the  meeting  while  they  worked. 

"  if  we  hadn't  been  idiots,"  Marion  said,  "  we 
should  have  attended  that  normal  class  and  been 
graduating,  this  morning,  instead  of  being  down 
here,  at  work  at  our  trunks  and  unknown  to 
fame." 

"Well,  you  wouldn't  go,"  Ruth  answered. 
"  Don't  you  know  you  declared  that  was  too 
much  like  work,  and  }^ou  hadn't  an  idea  of  learn 
ing  anything  ?  " 

"  Oh,  yes,"  said  Marion.  "  I  remember  a  great 
many  things  I  have  said,  that  I  would  quite  as 
soon  forget." 

By  dint  of  eager  bustling  from  one  point  to 
another,  the  work  was  accomplished  '  by  noon, 
and  all  the  girls  were  ready  for  the  afternoon 
service,  which  all  seemed  equally  eager  to  at 
tend.  When  they  reached  the  stand  they  looked 
about  them  in  surprise  and  dismay. 

"  Everybody  is  gone  I  "  said  Flossy,  "  only 
look  I  There  are  ever  so  many  unoccupied 
seats !  " 

Marion  laughed. 

"  And  ever  so  many  that  are  occupied,"  she 


The  Beginning  of  tfu    Svd.  451 

said.  "  My  child,  you  Lave  bccu  so  used  to 
counting  audiences  by  the  thousands,  that  six 
teen  or  seventeen  hundred  people  look  rather 
commonplace  to  you.  However,  there  are  more 
than  that  number  here,  I  think." 

]t  soon  became  a  matter  of  small  importance, 
whether  there   were  few  or   many,  so    long   as 
they  had   the   good  fortune  to  be  there   them 
selves,  and  to  have  the    company  of  Dr.  Ebov 
Tourje'e. 

Now  it  so  happened  that  among  these  feu) 
girls  there  were  two  to  whom  God  had  given 
special  gifts:  though  neither  of  them  had  evei 
considered  that  there  were  such  things  as  gifts 
from  God,  which  they  were  bound  to  use  in  his 
(service. 

There  was  Ruth  Erskine,  who  had  capabilities 
for  music  in  the  ends  of  her  fingers,  that  would 
have  almost  entranced  the  angels.  What  did 
she  do  with  her  talent?  Almost  nothing.  She 
hated  the  sickly  sentimentalities  \\hich,  set  to 
music,  find  their  way  into  fashionable  parlors  by 
the  score.  She  was  not  in  the  society  that  knew 
of,  or  craved,  the  higher,  grander  kind  of  music ; 
and  because  she  did,  and  did  not  know  it,  she 


452  Four  G-irls  at  Chautauqua. 

simply  palled  of  the  kind  within  her  reach  and 
let  her  gift  lie  waste. 

Then  there  was  Marion,  whose  voice  was  sim 
ply  grand,  both  in  power  and  tone.  What  had 
she  done  with  her  voice  ?  Sung  by  the  hour  to 
the  old  father  whose  tender  memory  lingered 
with  her  to-day  :  less  than  nothing  with  it  since  ; 
no  one  knew  she  could  sing ;  she  hated  singing 
in  school,  she  never  went  anywhere  else  ;  so  only 
occasionally  could  the  four  walls  of  her  upper 
back  room  have  testified  that  there  was  a  talent 
buried  there. 

Did  Dr.  Tourje'e  travel  from  Boston  to  Chau 
tauqua  for  the  purpose  of  inspiring  and  educa 
ting  these  two  girls.  I  don't  suppose  he  knew 
of  their  existence,  but  that  makes  no  difference, 
they  are  working  out  his  lecture  all  the  same  ;  in 
fact  it  is  nearly  a  year  since  these  Chautauqua 
girls  came  home,  and  if  you  have  any  sort  of  de 
sire  to  know  what  Chautauqua  theories  develop 
into,  when  put  to  the  test,  please  keep  a  sharp 
lookout  for  "  The  Chautauqua  Girls  at  Home." 

As  the  familiar  talk  on  music  went  on,  Ruth, 
with  her  eyes  aglow,  began  to  plan  in  her  own 
heart,  first  what  she  might  do,  and  presently 


The  Beginning  of  the  End.  453 

what  she  would  do.  And  Marion,  at  the  other 
end  of  the  seat,  went  through  the  same  process  ; 
neither  imagining  that  these  same  'doings '  would 
bring  them  together,  and  lead  to  endless  other 
doings.  But  that  is  just  the  way  in  which  life 
is  going  on  every  where,  who  imagined  that 
what  you  did  yesterday,  would  lead  your  neigh 
bor  to  do  what  he  has  done  to-day  ? 

"  Luther  said :  '  Next  to  theology,  I  place 
sacred  music/ "  This  was  the  sentence  that 
started  a  train  of  thought  for  Ruth.  After 
that,  she  listened  in  order  that  she  might  work. 

"  Never  use  an  interlude  in  church,  I  pray 
God  that  I  may  be  forgiven  for  the  fiddle-faddle 
that  I  have  strummed  on  organs,  in  the  name  of 
interludes." 

This,  delighted  Marion,  she  hated  interludes. 
She  hated  quartette  choirs.  She  had  steadily 
refused  to  be  beguiled  into  one,  by  the  few  who 
knew  that  she  could  sing,  so,  when  Dr.  Tourgce 
said  :  "  Think  of  the  grand  old  hymn,  '  From  all 
that  dwell* below  the  skies,  let  the  Creator's  praise 
arise,'  being  warbled  by  one  voice,  a  grand  chorus 
of  four  coming  in  on  the  third  line  !  " 

Marion  was  entirely  in  sympathy  with  him,  and 


454  Fours   Girts  at  Chautauqua. 

eager  for  work  in  the  way  in  which  he  pointed 
out.  It  was  an  enjoyable  afternoon  in  every  re 
spect.  But  to  "our  girls"  it  was  much  more 
than  that,  it  was  an  education.  Every  one  of 
them  got  ideas  which  they  were  eager  to  put  in 
practice  ;  and  they  saw  their  ways  clear  to  prac 
tise  them  to  some  purpose.  When  the  service 
was  over,  and  the  audience  moved  away,  a  sense 
of  sadness  and  loiiliness  began  to  creep  over 
man}',  snatches  of  remark  could  be  heard  on  all 
sides. 

"Where  is  Dr.  Fowler?" 

"  Gone  :  went  this  morning." 

"  Where  is  the  Miller  party  ?  " 

"  Oh,  they  went  some  time  ago." 

"  When  did  the  president  leave  ?  " 

"It's  all  about  'go,'"  Eurie  said:  "Look! 
How  they  are  crowding  down  to  the  boat;  and 
only  a  stray  one  now  and  then  coming  up  from 
there.  Who  would  have  supposed  it  could  make 
as  feel  so  forlorn  ?  I  am  glad  we  are  not  to  be 
at  the  morning  meeting.  I  am  not  sure  but  I 
should  cry  of  homesickness.  I  say,  girls,  let's  go 
to  Palestine." 

Which  suggestion  was  greeted  with  delight, 


TJie  Beginning  of  the  End.  455 

and  they  immediately  went.  A  great  many 
were  of  the  same  mind.  Mr.  Vanlennep  in  full 
Turkish  dress,  was  leading  the  way,  and  giving 
his  familiar  lecture  on  the  —  to  him  —  familiar 
spots.  The  girls  stood  near  him  by  the  sea  of 
Galilee,  and  heard  his  tender  farewell  words, 
and  his  hope  that  they  would  all  meet  on  the 
other  side  of  Jordon.  It  was  hard  to  keep  back 
the  quiet  tears  from  falling. 

They  climbed  Mount  Hermon  in  silence,  and 
looked  over  at  Mount  Lebanon,  they  came  back 
by  the  way  of  Cesarea,  and  turned  aside  to  take 
a  last  look  at  Joppa,  down  by  the  sea.  In  almost 
total  silence  this  walk  back  was  accomplished. 
What  was  the  matter  with  them  all? 

Mr.  Roberts  had  joined  them,  and  he  and 
Flossy  walked  on  ahead.  But  their  voices  were 
subdued  and  their  subject  —  to  judge  from  their 
faces,  quieting,  to  say  the  least.  Then  they  all 
went  to  take  their  last  supper  at  Chautauqua. 
Not  one  of  them  grumbled  over  anything.  In 
deed,  they  all  agreed  that  the  board  had  certainly 
improved  very  much  during  the  last  few  days, 
and  that  it  was  really  remarkable  that  such  a 
throng  of  people  could  have  been  served  so 


456  Four  Grirls  at  Chautaugua. 

promptl}-  and  courteously,  and  on  the  whole,  so 
well,  as  had  been  done  there.  Still,  it  was 
strange  to  have  plenty  of  elbow  room,  and  to  see 
the  waiters  moving  leisurely  up  and  down  the 
long  halls ;  no  one  in  haste,  no  one  kept  waiting. 

As  they  rose  from  table,  a  gentleman  passed 
through  ;  they  had  passed  each  other  every  day 
for  a  week ;  they  had  no  idea  what  his  name  was, 
and  I  suppose  he  knew  as  little  about  them.  But 
he*  paused  before  them : 

"  Good-bye,"  he  said.  And  held  out  his  hand, 
"  I  hope  we  shall  all  meet  at  the  assembly  up 
there  ! " 

"  Good-bye,"  they  answered,  and  they  shook 
hands.  None  of  them  smiled,  none  of  them 
thought  it  strange  ;  though  they  had  never  been 
introduced  I  It  was  the  Chautauqua  brother 
hood  of  feeling.  But  after  two  weeks  of  experi 
ence  and  much  practice  in  that  line,  it  was  im 
possible  to  rid  onesself  of  the  feeling  that  one 
must  hurry  down  to  the  stand  in  order  to  secure 
seats;  so  they  hurried,  and  had  a  new  experi 
ence  ;  they  were  among  the  first  twenty  on  the 
ground. 

"The  audience  will  be  utterly  lost   to-night 


Tke  Beginning  of  the  End.  457 

in  this  immense  array  of  seats  ;  "  Flossy  said  in 
dismay.  "Doesn't  it  feel  forlorn?"  But  they 
took  their  seats,  and  presently  came  Miss  Ryder 
and  seated  herself  at  the  piano  in  the  twilight, 
and  the  tunes  she  played  were  soft  and  tender 
and  weird. 

u  Every  note  says  c  goodbye,' "  said  Ruth,  and 
she  gave  a  little  sigh.  Presently,  the  calcium 
lights  began  to  glow,  as  usual,  and  meantime 
though  everybody  was  supposed  to  have  let'tj 
still,  the  people  came  from  somewhere ;  and  at 
last,  dismayed  voices  began  to  say : 

"  Why  !  Did  you  ever  see  the  like  !  I  thought 
we  should  surely  get  good  seats  to-night  ?  Where 
do  all  the  people  come  from." 

"  Look  !  Marion,"  said  Eurie.  "  What  would 
Dr.  Harris  think  of  such  a  congregation  as  this  J 
They  could  not  get  into  our  church,  could  they?'* 
But  just  then  the  hymn  claimed  attention  : 

"  My  days  are  gliding  swiftly  by." 

How  swiftly  these  days  had  glided  away. 
How  full  they  had  been  1  During  the  prayer 
that  followed,  all  heads  bowed,  and  the  silence 
that  fell  upon  them  made  it  seem  that  all  hearts 


458  Four   Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

joined.      Dr.    Vincent   was   the    first    speaker 
His  manner  and  voice  had  changed.     Both  were 
subdued;  he  looked  like  a  man  who  had  been 
lifted  up  for  a  great  mental  strain  and  was  grad 
ually  letting  down  again  to  earth. 

"  We  are  coining  toward  the  close,"  he  said. 
"  We  are  more  quiet  than  we  have  been  here  be 
fore.  Familiar  faces  and  forms  that  have  moved 
in  and  out  among  these  trees,  for  two  weeks 
past,  have  gone.  Only  a  few  hours  and  we  are 
going ;  only  a  few  hours  and  utter  silence  will 
fall  upon  Chautauqua." 

"Oh  dear!"  murmured  Eurie,  "\vhywill  he 
be  so  forlorn !  I  don't  see  why  I  need  care  so 
much !  Who  would  have  supposed  I  could !  " 

"  Hush  I "  said  Marion,  and  she  surrepti 
tiously  wiped  away  a  tear.  "A  love  feast,"  Dr. 
Vincent  said  they  were  going  to  have,  for  that 
last  evening ;  it  was  very  much  like  that.  The 
farewell  from  Canada  came  next;  the  speaker 
said  he  had  been  "  thawed  out,"  meant  to  have 
America  annexed  to  Canada !  Indeed  they  had 
already  been  annexed;  in  heart  and  soul! 
"Who's  who?"  said  he,  and  "what's  what? 
Who  knows?"  There  was  just  enough  of  the 


The  Beginning  of  the  End.  459 

comical  mixed  with  the  pathetic  in  this  address 
to  steady  many  a  tremulous  heart. 

Dr.  Presbry  followed  in  much  the  same  strain, 
closing,  though,  with  such  a  tender  tribute  to 
some  who  had  been  at  the  assernbty  the  year  be 
fore,  and  had  since  gone  to  join  the  assembly 
that  never  breaks  up,  that  the  tears  came  to  the 
surface  again.  But  those  blessed  Tennesseeans 
just  at  that  point  made  the  grounds  ring  with 
the  chorus,  "  Oh  jubilee  !  jubilee  1  the  Christian 
religion  is  jubilee  !  "  and  followed  it  with  :  "  I've 
been  a  long  time  in  the  house  of  God,  and  I  ain't 
got  weaiy  yet." 

By  that  time  our  girls  looked  at  each  other 
with  faces  on  which  tears  and  smiles  struggled 
for  the  mastery. 

"  Shall  we  laugh,  or  cry  ?  "  whispered  Eurie, 
and  then  they  giggled  outright.  But  they 
sobered  instantly  and  sat  upright,  ready  to 
listen,  for  the  next  one  who  appeared  on  the 
platform  was  Dr.  Deems. 

He,  too,  commenced  as  if  the  spell  of  the  part 
ing  was  upon  him.  "He  was  too  tired,"  he 
said,  "  to  make  a  short  speech.  Some  one  asked 
Walter  Scott  why  he  didn't  put  a  certain  book 


460  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

of  Ins  into  one  volume  instead  of  five.  And  lie 
said  lie  hadn't  time.  It  took  five  weeks  to  pre 
pare  a  speech  three  minutes  long.  And  then  lie 
warmed,  and  grew  with  his  subject  until  the 
beautiful  thoughts  fell  around  them  like  pearls. 
Not  only  beautiful,  but  searching. 

"No  man,"  said  he,  "dares  to  make  a  care 
less  speech  at  Chautauqua,  there  are  too  many 
to  treasure  it  up,  to  plant  it  again."  Of  course 
he  knew  nothing  about  those  girls,  and.  how 
much  seed  they  were  gathering  which  they 
meant  to  plant;  but  they  gathered  it,  all  the 
same.  lie  dropped  his  seeds  with  lavish  hand. 
This  was  one  that  took  root  in  Marion's  brain 
and  heart : 

"  There  are  so  many  side  influences  that  are 
unconscious,  that  the  only  safe  way  for  one  to 
do  is  to  let  no  part  of  himself  ravel,  but  to  keep 
himself  round  and  thorough,  and  healthy  to  the 
core." 

After  that,  Marion's  pencil,  on  which  I  have  to 
depend  for  my  notes,  gave  up  in  despair.  "  I 
couldn't  keep  track  of  that  man  I "  she  said,  when 
J  complained.  "There  was  no  more  use  to  try 
than  there  would  be  to  count  these  apple  bios- 


The  Beginning  of  the  End.  461 


soms,"  for  it  was  this  spring,  and  we  were  stand 
ing  in  an  apple  orchard,  and  a  perfect  shower  of 
the  white,  sweet-smelling  things  came  fluttering 
round  our  heads.  But  after  he  'calmed  down  a 
little,'  as  she  called  it,  she  tried  to  write  again  ; 
and  I  copy  this  : 

"  Brethren  :  This  meeting  will  convert  some 
of  the  most  thoughtful  people  of  this  generation  : 
men  who  come  here  not  knowing  by  personal 
experience  the  power  of  this  thing,  men  who 
walk  thoughtfully  up  and  down  these  aisles, 
looking  on,  will  say :  4  There  are  scholars  here, 
there  are  men  of  genius,  of  great  brain  power, 
there  are  men  and  women  here  of  every  variety 
of  temperament,  and  attainment,  held  together 
for  fourteen  days  by  one  common  bond,'  and  the 
perseverance,  the  solemnity,  the  hilarity,  the 
freedom,  the  naturalness,  the  earnestness  of  this 
meeting  will  so  impress  them  that  they  will 
know  that  there  is  a  miracle  holding  us,  a  super 
natural  strength. 

"  May  I  give  you  to-night  one  word  more  of 
gospel  invitation?  Come,  go  with  us,  you  who 
do  not  understand  this  matter  for  yourselves,  go 
with  as,  and  we  will  do  you  good.  Will  you  go 
to  your  rooms  to-night  and  make  the  resolve 


462  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

that  shall  write  your  names  in  God's  book  of 
life  ?  The  recording  angel  has  a  trembling  hand 
this  minute,  waiting  for  your  answer.  Wear)' 
one,  so  young  and  yet  so  tired,  come,  come,  come 
now." 

Marion,  with  cheeks  burning,  and  eyes  very 
bright  and  earnest,  looked  around  her:  Eurie 
sat  next  to  her,  she  seemed  unmoved,  there  was 
no  sign  of  tears  to  her  bright  eyes,  but  she  was 
looking  steadily  at  the  speaker. 

"Never  mind!"  Marion  said  within  herself, 
and  there  came  to  her  an  eager  desire  to  begin 
her  practice,  to  do  something ;  what  if  it  were 
utter  failure,  would  the  fault  be  hers  ? 

Following  the  sudden  leading  that  she  had 
learned  no  better  than  to  call  c  impulse '  she  said 
in  -a  quick  low  whisper:  "Eurie,  won't  youl" 
And  she  held  her  breath  for  the  answer,  and 
could  distinctly  feel  the  beating  of  her  own 
heart.  Eurie  turned  great  gray  astonished  eyes 
on  her  friend,  and  said  in  a  firm  quiet  voice  :  "  I 
have.  I  settled  that  matter  on  Saturday.  Have 
you?" 

And  then  those  two  girls,  each  with  the  won 
derful  surprise  ringing  music  in  her  heart,  were 
willing  to  have  that  meeting  over. 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 

THE  END  OP   THE  BEGINNING 


LT  was  almost  over.  Dr.  Deems  sat  down 
id  the  hush  of  hearts,  and  all  the  people 
seemed  to  feel  that  no  more  words  were  needed. 
Yet,  the  next  moment,  they  greeted  Frank 
Beard  with  joy,  and  prepared  themselves  with 
great  satisfaction  to  listen  to  what  he  had  to  say. 
Frank  Beard  was  one  of  Chautauqua's  favorites. 
People  had  not  the  least  idea  that  they  could 
be  beguiled  into  laughter ;  hearts  were  too  ten 
der  for  that ;  yet  you  should  have  heard  the 
bursts  of  mirth  that  rang  there  for  the  next  five 
minutes  !  Frank  Beard  was  so  quaint,  so  orig 
inal,  so  innocent  in  his  originality,  so  pure  and 

"  (463) 


464  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

high-toned,  even  in  his  fun,  and  they  liked  him 
so  much  that  every  heart  there  responded  to  his 
mirth.  The  roars  of  laughter  reached  as  high  as 
the  music  had  done,  but  a  little  while  before. 

Yet,  when  people's  hearts  are  tender,  and  full, 
it  is  strange  how  near  laughter  is  to  tears  !  Just 
a  sentence  from  the  same  lips  and  the  hush  fell 
on  them  again. 

Frank  Beard  had  brought  his  heart  with  him 
to  Chautauqua,  and  he  was  evidently  leaving 
some  of  it  there.  The  touching  little  story  of 
his  dream  about  his  mother  brought  out  a 
flutter  of  handkerchiefs,  and  made  tear-stained 
faces.  And  when  he,  simply  as  a  child,  tenderly 
as  a  large-souled  man,  trustfully  as  only  a  Chris 
tian  can,  said  his  farewell,  and  told  of  his  joyful 
hope  of  meeting  them  all  in  the  eternal  morning, 
absolute  stillness  settled  over  them. 

So  many  last  words  —  one  and  another  came 
— just  a  word,  just  "good-bye,"  until  we  meet 
again;  maybe  here,  next  year,  maybe  there, 
where  good-byes  are  never  heard.  Finally  came 
Dr.  Vincent,  his  strong  decided  voice  breaking 
the  spell,  and  helping  them  to  realize  that  they 
were  men  and  women  with  work  to  do : 


The  End  of  the  Beginning.  465 

"  Now,  my  friends,"  he  said,  "  we  really  must 
go  home ;  it  is  hard  to  close  ;  I  know  that,  no 
one  knows  it  better :  we  have  closed  a  good  many 
times,  and  it  won't  stay  closed.  The  last  word 
has  been  said  over  and  over  again.  I  said  it  my 
self,  some  time  ago,  and  here  I  am  again :  we 
must  just  stop,  never  mind  the  closing ;  we  will 
sing  a  hymn,  and  go  away,  and  next  year  we  will 
begin  right  here,  where  we  left  it." 

But  he  didn't  "stop,"  and  no  one  wanted  him 
to.  His  voice  grew  tender,  and  his  words  were 
solemn.  The  last  words  that  he  would  ever 
speak  to  many  a  soul  within  sound  of  his  voice ; 
it  could  not  be  otherwise.  You  can  imagine  bet 
ter  than  I  could  tell  you  what  Dr.  Vincent's 
message  would  be  at  such  a  time  as  that. 

Breaking  into  it,  came  the  shrill  sound  of  the 
whistle.  The  Col.  Phillips —  the  last  boat  for 
the  night  —  was  giving  out  its  warning.  The 
Chautauqua  bells  began  their  parting  peal.  Not 
even  for  his  own  convenience  would  that  marvel 
of  punctuality  have  the  bells  tarry  a  moment 
behind  the  hour  appointed. 

Our  girls  looked  at  each  other  and  made  signs, 
and  nodded,  and  began  to  slip  quietly  out.  They 
had  arranged  to  spend  the  night  at  the  Mayvilla 


406  Fours  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

House,  and  take  an  early  train.  Many  others 
were  softly  and  reluctantly  moving  away.  They 
were  very  quiet  during  that  last  walk  down  to 
the  wharf.  Glorious  moonlight  was  abroad,  and 
the  water  shone  like  a  sheet  of  silver. 

As  they  walked,  the  evening  wind  brought  to 
them  the  notes  of  the  last  song  which  the  throng 
at  the  stand  were  singing.  A  clear,  ringing,  yet 
tender  farewell.  It  floated  sweetly  down  to 
them,  growing  fainter  and  fainter  as  the  distance 
lengthened,  until,  as  they  stepped  on  board  the 
boat,  they  lost  its  sound.  There  were  many 
people  going  the  same  way,  but  there  was  little 
talking.  There  are  times  when  people,  though 
they  may  be  very  far  from  unhappiness,  have  no 
desire  to  talk.  Once  on  deck,  Marion  turned 
and  clasped  both  of  Eurie's  hands. 

"  I  have  had  such  a  blessed  surprise  to-night  I  " 
she  said,  with  glowing  face.  "I  did  not  think 
of  such  a  thing!  O  Eurie,  why  didn't  you  tell 
me?" 

"  You  cannot  begin  to  be  as  surprised  as  I 
am,"  Eurie  said.  "I  thought  you  were  miles 
away  from  such  a  thing.  Why  didn't  you  tell 
me  ?  " 

lluth  and  Flossy  were  leaning  over,  watching 


The  End  of  the  Beginning.  467 

the  play  of  the  water  against  the  boat's  side. 

"  What  about  those  two  ? "  Eurie  said,  nod 
ding  her  head  toward  them. 

Marion  sighed. 

"  Ruth  is  very  far  from  understanding  any 
thing  about  it,"  she  said ;  "  at  least  the  last  time 
I  talked  with  her  she  knew  as  little  about  the 
Christian  life  as  the  veriest  heathen  so  far  at 
least  as  personal  duty  was  concerned." 

"When  was  that?" 

"  Wh}^,  a  week  ago  ;  more  than  a  week." 

"  How  long  is  it  since  you  settled  this  question 
for  yourself?" 

"  Since  yesterday,"  Marion  said,  blushing  and 
laughing.  "  Eurie,  you  would  do  for  a  cross- 
questioner." 

"  And  I  have  been  on  this  side  since  Satur 
day,"  Eurie  answered,  significantly.  "A  great 
many  things  can  happen  in  a  week." 

At  this  point,  Ruth  turned  and  came  towards 
them.  She  looked  quiet  and  grave. 

"It  is  a  year,  isn't  it?  since  we  stood  here  to 
gether  for  the  first  time,"  she  said.  "  At  least 
I  seorn  to  have  had  a  year  of  life  and  experience. 
Do  you  know,  girls,  I  have  something  to  tell 


468  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

you  :  I  thought  to  wait  until  we  reached  home, 
but  I  have  decided  to-night  that  I  will  riot.  I 
am  sorry  that  I  have  not  told  you  before. 
Marion,  don't  you  know  how  like  a  simpleton  I 
talked,  a  week  ago  last  Saturday  night?  I  want 
to  tell  you  that  I  was  a  fool ;  and  was  talking 
about  that  of  which  I  knew  nothing  at  all.  I 
want  to  assure  you  that  there  is  a  safe  place, 
that  I  know  it  now  by  actual  experience,  I  have 
gone  to  the  mountain  and  it  is  sure  and  safe ; 
and,  oh,  girls,  I  want  you  both  to  come  so 
much." 

"  I  know  the  mountain;"  Marion  said,  reach 
ing  out,  and  clasping  Ruth's  hand.  "  The  name 
of  it  is  Calvary,  it  is  safe,  and  it  is  sufficient  for 
us  all.  Ruthie,  we  three  are  together  in  this 
thing." 

What  those  girls  said  to  each  other  then  and 
there  is  sacred  to  them.  But  if  I  could,  I  would 
tell  you  something  of  the  joy  they  felt. 

Flossy  still  leaned  over  the  railing,  a  small 
quiet  speck  in  the  moonlight.  Marion  kept 
turning  her  head  in  her  direction.  "  Our  poor 
little  Flossy  would  not  understand  much  about 
this  experience,  I  suppose,"  she  said  at  last; 


The  End  of  the  Beginning.  469 

"  she  is  such  a  child,  and  yet,  I  don't  know  — 
sometimes  I  have  fancied  that  she  thinks  more 
than  we  give  her  credit  for.  That  at  least  she 
has  lately." 

"  Let  us  tell  her,  anyway,"  Eurie,  said,  "  we 
can't  know  what  good  it  may  do.  If  we  had  not 
been  so  dreadfully  afraid  of  each  other,  during 
the  last  few  da}^s,  we  might  have  helped  each 
other  a  good  deal ;  for  my  part,  I  have  learned  a 
lesson  on  which  I  mean  to  practice." 

Ruth  looked  up  quickly,  a  rare  smile  in  her 
eyes ;  she  opened  her  lips  to  speak  to  them,  then 
seemed  to  change  her  mind  and  raised  her  voice : 
"  Flossy  !  "  And  Flossy  came  at  her  call. 

"  Come  here,"  Ruth  said,  withdrawing  her 
hand  from  Marion's,  and  winding  her  arm  around 
the  small  figure  beside  her. 

"  Flossy,  the  girls  have  had  our  very  experi 
ence  all  by  themselves,  and  they  want  to  know 
how  long  it  is  since  you  began  to  think  about 
this  matter  for  yourself." 

Flossy  turned  her  soft  blue  eyes  on  Marion. 

"  The  very  night  we  came,  Marion,  and  you 
made  me  come  to  the  meeting  in  the  rain,  you 
remember  ?  I  heard  that  which  I  knew  would 


470  Four  Crirls  at  Chautauqua. 

never  let  me  rest  again,  until  I  understood  it, 
and  had  it  for  my  own.  But  I  was  very  igno 
rant,  and  foolish,  and  I  blundered  along  in  the 
dark  for  three  mortal  days!  After  that  Jesus 
found  me,  and  I  have  known  since  what  it  is  to 
live  in  the  light." 

"A  Christian  experience  of  ten  whole  days !  " 
Eurie  said.  Of  course  she  was  the  first  one  to 
rise  from  her  surprise  and  get  possession  of  her 
tongue. 

"  Flossy,  you  have  had  a  chance  to  get  a  good 
way  ahead  instead  of  being  behind,  as  we  thought. 
You  will  have  to  show  us  the  wa}^." 

"  Isn't  this  just  wonderful !  "  broke  forth  Mar 
ion,  suddenly,  an  overwhelming  sense  coming 
over  her,  of  the  new  relations  that  they  four 
would  henceforth  bear  to  each  other.  "  Why, 
girls,  what  would  they  say  up  there  at  the  stand, 
if  they  could  know  what  has  come  to  each  of 
us!  I  almost  feel  like  going  back  and  telling 
them  all.  Just  think  what  a  delight  it  would 
be  to  Dr.  Vincent,  and  Dr.  Deems,  and,  oh,  to 
all  of  them.  Isn't  it  queer  to  think  how  well 
we  know  them  all,  and  they  are  not  aware  of  our 
existence  ?  " 


The  End  of  the  Beginning.  471 

"  I  don't  believe  people  will  have  to  wait  to 
bo  introduced  to  each  other  when  they  get  to 
heaven,"  Eurie  said ;  "  that  is  one  of  the  first 
things  I  am  going  to  do  when  I  get  there  ;  hunt 
up  some  of  these  Chautauqua  people  and  culti 
vate  their  acquaintance." 

This  sentence    gave    Flossy  a  new  thought: 
"  We  are  really  all  going  to  heaven !  " 
She  said  it  precisely  as  you  might  speak  of  a 
trip  to  Europe  on  which  your  heart  had  long  been 
set. 

"We  are  just  as  sure  of  it  as  though  we  were 
there  this  minute  !  Girls,  don't  you  know  how 
nice  we  thought  it  would  be  to  be  together  at 
Chautauqua  for  two  whole  weeks?  Now  think 
of  being  together,  there,  for  a  million  years  I  " 
But  the  thought  which  filled  Flossy's  heart  with 
a  sweet  song  of  melody,  and  wreathed  her  face 
in  glad  smiles,  was  such  an  overwhelming  one 
to  Marion,  so  immense  with  power  and  possibil 
ity,  that  it  seemed  to  her  to  take  her  very  breath  ; 
she  turned  abruptly  from  the  rest  and  walked  to 
the  vessel's  side  to  still  the  throbbing  of  her 
heart. 

Meantime  the  boat  had  been  filling  with  pas- 


472  Four  Girls  at  Chautauqua. 

sengers,  and  now  she  was  getting  under  way. 
Still  the  hush  continued ;  the  people  stood  closely 
around  the  railing,  on  the  Chautauqua  side,  and 
looked  lovingly  back  at  the  fair  point  of  land 
that  lay  before  them  in  glowing  moonlight. 
Presently  a  leading  voice  began  to  sing : 

"  There's  a  land  that  is  fairer  than  day, 
And  by  faith  we  can  see  it  afar ; 
For  the  Father  waits  over  the  way 
To  prepare  us  a  dwelling-place  there. 
We  shall  meet  in  the  sweet  by  and  by, 
On  that  beautiful  shore  in  the  sweet  by  and  by, 
We  shall  meet  on  that  beautiful  shore." 

Before  the  chorus  was  reached,  every  voice 
that  could  sing  at  all  must  have  taken  up  the 
strain.  Marion,  for  the  first  time  in  years  gave 
a  hint  of  the  full  compass  of  her  powers,  mak 
ing  Ruth  turn  suddenly  towards  her,  with  a 
brightening  face,  for  she  saw  how  the  singing 
and  the  playing  could  fit  into  each  other,  and  do 
good  service. 

On  and  on  stole  the  vessel  through  the  silver 
water.  The  courteous  captain  came  around 
quietly  for  his  tickets,  and  to  one  and  another 


The  End  of  the  Beginning.  473 

with  whose  faces  he  had  grown  familiar  he  said : 
"  We  shall  miss  3-011 :  the  Col.  Phillips  has  been 
proud  of  carrying  you  all  safely  back  and  forth.'* 

One  said  to  him  in  return :  "  I  hope,  captain,  we 
shall  all  laud  at  last  safe  in  the  harbor."  And 
the  captain  bowed  his  answer  in  silence.  It 
would  have  been  hard  to  speak  words  just  then. 

But  ever  and  anon  that  leading  voice  took  up 
words  of  song. 

Still  the  song  that  best  seemed  to  suit  all 
hearts  was  that  tender  "  By  and  b}*,"  and  as  the 
lights  along  the  Chautauqua  shore  grew  dim  it 
rose  again  in  swelling  volume : 

"  We  shall  meet,  we  shall  sing,  we  shall  reign, 
In  the  land  where  the  saved  never  die ; 
We  shall  rest  free  from  sorrow  and  pain. 
Safe  at  home  in  the  sweet  by  and  by." 

Then  the  refrain,  repeated  and  re-repeated, 
until,  as  the  last  lingering  note  of  it  died  away, 
the  boat  touched  at  the  wharf,  and  looking  back, 
they  saw  that  the  Chautauqua  lights  were  out, 
and  silence  and  darkness  had  Fail-point. 

"  Good-bye,"  Marion  said,  and  she  bowed  to 
wards  the  distant  shore ;  she  was  smiling,  but 
her  lips  were  quivering. 


474  Four   Grirls  at   Chautauqua. 

"  We  shall  meet  in  the  sweet  by  and  by,M 
Flossy  quoted,  but  her  voice  trembled. 

"  There  is  a  chance  to  do  grand  work  first, 
that  the  final  meeting  may  be  infinitely  larger, 
because  of  us." 

This  the  leading  voice  in  the  singing  said,  as 
he  held  out  his  hand  to  say  good-bye.  And 
us  they  took  it  some  of  the  girls  noticed  for  the 
first  time  that  it  was  Mr.  Roberts  ;  as  for  Flossy, 
she  had  known  it  all  the  time. 

"  We  are  going  to  try  to  do  some  of  the  work, 
Mr.  Roberts,"  Eurie  said ;  "  I  have  found  the 
road  to  Bethany  since  I  saw  you,  the  real  road, 
and  we  are  going  to  try  and  keep  it  well  trod 
den." 

He  was  shaking  hands  with  Flossy,  as  Eurie 
spoke,  and  he  still  held  her  hand  while  he  an 
swered  :  "  Good  news  !  There  is  plenty  of  work 
to  do.  It  is  well  that  Chautauqua  has  gathered 
in  new  reapers.  I  am  coming  to  your  city,  next 
\vinter;  I  shall  want  to  help  you.  Good-bye." 


THE  END. 


FROM  DIFFERENT  STANDPOINTS. 

By  Pansy  and  Faye  Huntington.  12mo.  Price  $1.50. 
Boston:  D.  Lothrop  &  Co., 

If  there  is  any  better  writer  of  Sunday  School  books  than 
"  Pansy,"  we  should  like  to  make  her  acquaintance,  sh« 
has  a  rare  tact  in  story  telling,  and  knows  quite  as  well  what 
to  omit  as  what  to  say.  Even  the  sternest  critics,  of  S.  S. 
Literature  surrender  to  Pansy,  in  spite  of  themselves,  and 
confess  that  her  books  are  worth  reading. 

"  From  Different  Standpoints  "  is  not  quite  so  broad  in  its 
range  as  some  of  her  previous  works,  but  is  more  intense. 
The  story  is  so  full  of  life,  though  made  up  largely  of  letters 
and  journals,  the  characters  are  so  sharply  drawn  with  so 
thorough  an  insight  into  the  possibilities  of  human  nature, 
and  the  religious  element  is  of  so  high  a  type,  and  yet  withal 
so  natural,  that  the  most  careless  reader  is  fascinated,  and 
feels  the  inspiration  of  a  noble  Christian  life.  Such  books, 
are  a  valuable  addition  to  any  S.  S.  libraries,  and  will  sup 
plement  the  best  religious  teachings  of  Bible-class  or  pulpit. 

As  to  the  double  authorship  of  the  book,  Faye  Huntington 
9  so  nearly  the  double  of  Pansy,  that  her  separate  work 
cannot  be  detected. 


is  one  of  th«  most  popular 
of  our  modern  writers. 

YOUNG  RICK.    By  Julia  A.  Eastman.  Large 

i6mo.     Twelve  illustrations  by  Sol  Eytinge .  $i   50 

A  bright,  fascinating  story  of  a  little  boy  who  was  both  a  bless 
ing  and  a  bother. —  Boston  Journal. 

The  most  delightful  book  on  the  list  for  the  children  of  the 
family,  being  full  of  adventures  and  gay  home  scenes  and  merry 
play-times.  "Paty"  would  have  done  credit  to  Dickens  in  his 
palmiest  days.  The  strange  glows  and  shadows  of  her  character 
are  put  in  lovingly  and  lingeringly,  with  the  pencil  of  a  master. 
Miss  Margaret's  character  of  light  is  admirably  drawn,  while  Aunt 
Lesbia,  Deacon  Harkaway,  Tom  Dorrance,  and  the  master  and 
mistress  of  Graythorpe  poor-house  are  genuine  "charcoal 
sketches." 

STRIKING  FOR  THE  RIGHT.     By  Julia 

A.  Eastman.     Large  i6mo.     Illustrated       .     i  75 

While  this  story  holds  the  reader  breathless  with  expectancy 
and  excitement,  its  civilizing  influence  in  the  family  is  hardly  to 
be  estimated.  In  all  quarters  it  has  met  with  the  warmest  praise. 

THE  ROMNEYS  OF  RIDGEMONT.  By 

Julia  A.  Eastman.  i6mo.  Illustrated  ,  i  50 

BEULAH  ROMNEY.  By  Julia  A.  Eastman. 

16  mo.  Illustrated  .  .  .  .  .  i  50 

Two  stories  wondrously  alive,  flashing  with  fun,  sparkling  with 
tears,  throbbing  with  emotion.  The  next  best  thing  to  attending 
Mrs.  Kale's  big  boarding-school  is  to  read  Beulah's  experience 
there. 

SHORT-COMINGS  AND  LONG-GOINGS. 

By  Julia  A.  Eastman.     16  mo.     Illustrated,     i   25 

A  remarkabls  book,  crowded  with  remarkable  characters.  It 
is  a  picture  gallery  of  human  nature. 

KITTY    KENT'S   TROUBLES.      By  Julia 

A.  Eastman.     16  mo.     Illustrated        .         .     i   50 

"  A  delicious  April-day  style  of  book,  sunshiny  with  smiles  on 
one  page  while  the  next  is  misty  with  tender  tears.  Almost  every 
type  of  American  school-girl  is  here  represented  —  the  vain  Helen 
Dart,  the  beauty,  Amy  Searle,  the  ambitious,  high  bred,  conserv 
ative  Anna  Matson  ;  but  next  to  Kitty  herself  sunny  little  Paul 
ine  Sedgewick  will  prove  the  general  favorite.  It  is  a  story  fully 
calculated  io  win  both  girls  and  boys  toward  noble,  royal  ways  of 
doinf  J*ttle  as  well  as  great  things.  All  teachers  should  feel  an 
late*  i.  in  placing  it  in  the  hands  of  th«ir  pupils." 


IBOOIECS 


VIRGINIA.     By  £F.  H.  G.Kingston.     16  mo. 

Illustrated    .         ......  $i  25 

A  stirring  story  of  adventure  upon  sea  and  land. 

AFRICAN  ADVENTURE  AND  ADVENT 
URERS.  By  Rev.  G.  T.  Day,  D.  D.  16 
mo.  Illustrated  .  .  .  .  i  50 

The  stories  of  Speke,  Grant,  Baker,  Livingstone  and  Stanley 
are  put  into  simple  shape  for  the  entertainment  of  young  readers. 

NOBLE  WORKERS.     Edited  by  S.  F.  Smith, 

D.  D.     i6mo.         .         .         .         .         .         .     i   5<7 

STORIES  OF  SUCCESS.     Edited  by  5.  F. 

Smith,  D.  D.     i6mo   .         .         .         .  i   50 

Inspiring  biographies  and  records  which  leave  a  most  whole 
some  and  enduring  effect  upon  the  reader. 

MYTHS    AND    HEROES.     16    mo.       Illus 

trated.     Edited  by  S.  F.  Smith,  D.  D  .         .150 

KNIGHTS  AND  SEA   KINGS.     Edited  by 

S.  F.  Smith,  D.  D.     i2mo.     Illustrated       .     i   50 

Two  entertaining  books,  which  will  fasten  forever  the  historical 
and  geographical  lessons  of  the  school-room  firmly  in  the  stu 
dent's  mind. 

CHAPLIN'S  LIFE  OF  BENJAMIN  FRANK 

LIN-.     i6mo.     Illustrated    .         .         .         .     i  50 

LIFE  OF  AMOS  LAWRENCE.     i2mo.     111.     15(7 

Two  biographies  of  perennial  value.  No  worthier  books  were 
ever  offered  as  holiday  presents  for  our  American  young  men. 

WALTER   NEAL'S    EXAMPLE.      By  Rev. 

Theron  Brown.     16  mo.     Illustrated  .         .     i   25 

Walter  Neal's  Example  is  by  Rev.  Theron  Brown,  the  editor  of 
that  very  successful  paper,  The  Youth's  Companion.  The  story 
is  a  touching  one,  and  is  in  parts  so  vivid  as  to  seem  drawn  from 
the  life.  —  N.  Y.  Independent. 

TWO  FORTUNE-SEEKERS.  Stories  by 
Rossiter  Johnson,  Louise  Chandler  Moulton, 
E.  Stuart  Phelps,  Ella  Farman,  etc.  Fulty 
illustrated  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  i  50 


FOUR   GIRLS    AT    CHAUTAUQUA.     By 

Pansy.     12  mo.     Illustrated         .         .         .  $i  50 

The  most  fascinating  "watering-place'*  story  ever  published. 
Fo\ir  friends,  each  a  brilliant  girl  in  her  way,  tired  of  Saratoga 
and  Newport,  try  a  fortnight  at  the  new  summer  resort  on  Chau- 
tauqua  Lake,  choosing  the  time  when  the  National  Sunday-school 
Assembly  is  in  camp.  Rev.  Drs.  Vincent,  Deems,  Cuyler,  Ed 
ward  Eggleston,  Mrs.  Emily  Huntington  Miller,  move  promi 
nently  through  the  story. 

HOUSEHOLD  PUZZLES.    By  Pansy.    i2mo. 

Illustrated    .         .         .         .         .         .  i  50 

How  to  make  one  dollar  do  the  work  of  five.  A  family  of 
beautiful  girls  seek  to  solve  this  "puzzle."  Piquant,  humorous, 
but  written  with  an  intense  purpose. 

THE  RANDOLPHS.    By  Pansy.     12  mo.    Il 
lustrated      .         .         .         .         .         .         .     i  50 

A  sequel  to  Household  Puzzles,  in  which  the  Putzles  are  agree 
ably  disposed  of. 

GRANDPA'S  DARLINGS.  By  Pansy.  i6mo. 

Illustrated    .         .         .         .         .         .         .     i   25 

A  big  book,  full  of  "good  times"  for  the  little  people  of  the 
family. 

ESTER  RIED       .         .         .         .By  Pansy,  i  50 

JULIA  RIED         ......  i  50 

THREE  PEOPLE          .         .         .         „        .  i  50 

THE  KING'S  DAUGHTER         .         „        .  i  50 

WISE  AND  OTHERWISE  .         .         „        .  i  50 

CUNNING  WORKMEN       .        .         „        .  i  25 

JESSIE  WELLS    ......  75 

DOCIA'S  JOURNAL  75 

BERME'S  WHITE  CHICKEN             „        .  75 

HELEN  LESTER.  75 

A  CHRISTMAS  TIME                          „        .  15 


*c  I/CISS  IF'-A-IR/M-A-IT  has  the  very  desirable  knack  of  imparting 
raluable  ideas  under  the  guise  of  a  pleasing  story." — TJte  New  Century. 

MRS.  KURD'S  NIECE.  ^  Ella  Farman.   111.  $i   50 

A  thrilling  story  for  the  girls,  especially  for  those  who  think 
they  have  a  "  mission,"  to  whom  we  commend  sturdy  English 
Hannah,  with  her  small  means,  and  her  grand  success.  Saidee 
Kurd  is  one  of  the  sweetest  girls  ever  embalmed  in  story,  and 
Lois  Gladstone  one  of  the  noblest. 

THE  COOKING  CLUB  OF  TU-WHIT 
HOLLOW.  By  Etta  Farman.  16  mo. 
Eight  full-page  illustrations  .  .  .  i  25 

Worth  reading  by  all  who  delight  in  domestic  romance.  —  Fall 
River  Daily  News. 

The  practical  instructions  in  housewifery,  wliich  are  abundant, 
are  set  in  the  midst  of  a  bright,  wholesome  story,  and  the  little 
housewives  who  figure  in  it  are  good  specimens  of  very  human, 
but  at  the  same  time  very  lovable,  little  American  girls.  It 
ought  to  b«  the  most  successful  little  girls'  book  of  the  season. — 
The  Advance. 

A  LITTLE  WOMAN.    By  Ella  Farman.   i6m.     i   oo 

The  daintiest  of  all  juvenile  books.  From  its  merry  pages,  wiit- 
some  Kinnie  Crosby  has  stretched  out  her  warm  little  hand  to 
help  thousands  of  young  girls. 

A  WHITE  HAND.  ^  Ella  Farman.  i2ra.  111.     i   50 

A  genuine  painting  of  American  society.  Millicent  and  Jack 
are  drawn  by  a  bold,  firm  hand.  No  one  can  lay  this  story  down 
until  the  last  leaf  is  turned. 


WIDE   A  WAKE. 

AN    ILLUSTRATED    MAGAZINE 

For  the  Young  Folks. 

.00FEI^^lTIsr"TJ-3^:.    FOST^-G-IE  lE^EIE3^' 

Edited  by  ELLA  FARMAN. 

Published  by  D.  LOTHKOP  &  CO.,  Boston,  Mass. 


It  alwavs  contains  a  feast  of  fat  things  for  the  little  folks,  and  folks  who  are  no 
longer  little  find.there  lost  childhood  in  its  pages.  We  are  not  saying  too  much 
when  we  say  that  its  versatile  editor  —  Ella  Farman,  is  more  fully  at  home 
in  the  child's  wonder-land  than  any  other  living  American  writer.  She  is 
thoroughly  en  rapport  with  her  readers,  gives  them  now  a  sugar  plum  of  poesy, 
now  a  dainty  jelly-cake  of  imagination,  and  cunningly  intermixes  all  the  solid 
bread  of  thought  that  the  child's  mind  can  digest  and  assimilate. — York  Tritt 
Dttnocrat. 


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